Everything You Want and More
by turtlechick
Summary: They say the big city changes a person. The question is; are those changes for the good? I promised myself from the start, I was going to stay true to myself. AU Nejiten, other pairings.
1. Oh Goodie

_Yay my new story!!!  
I'm not too sure how I like it yet...  
It's too normal, if you get what I mean? lol  
As I promised it will be full of Nejiten smexy goodness. XD  
Hope you all like it :D  
Enjoy!!!_

_Pairings: Nejiten, and others later on._

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto._

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**Everything You Want and More**

Chapter 1

By: turtlechick

"Now remember to call us when you get there. Do you have everything you need? Underwear? Deodorant?"

"Mom!" She hugged me.

"You'll call won't you?"

"Yes mom, I'll call."

I never thought I'd be having this conversation with my mom so soon. Just last year I had graduated from high school, and here I was today in the airport ready to leave for my new job. I was really going to miss my mom, and of course my dad. Goodbyes were one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. I knew this was for the best. Hopefully at this new job, I would be one step closer to finally fulfilling my dream.

"_Flight 114 ready to board."_

"That's me." I said as I gave them each one last hug. This would be good for me, maybe now I could learn to do things on my own.

"Good luck, Tenten!" My dad said, as he waved and tried to console my weeping mother in his arms. Yeah… I was going to miss them.

As soon as I got on the plane, I quickly found my seat, threw my luggage above and sat down. So far the person who was supposed to sit next to me hadn't shown up. I thought I was going to get the whole row to myself, fat chance.

A few minutes before the plane took off, I saw a large man come down the aisle. By look of his face, he was looking for his seat. All I could think was, _"not me, not me, not me."_ But sure enough, he sat down right next to me, lovely. What a great way to start this new adventure.

He was nice though, we made small talk before he fell asleep. He was on his way back home from a business trip. I couldn't help but think maybe in a few years I would be going on business trips. Sure, he was nice, but his snoring sure wasn't. This was going to be a long flight.

I wasn't able to get any sleep, but I could think about my new life. For as long I as I could remember, I've always wanted to be a radio personality. I loved being silly and fun, and when I was little my mom suggested acting. We learned that would never work on my very first play. I had scored the lead, and rehearsals had gone great, but when those curtains came up, I froze. That's why I could be great at radio, no one had to see my face and I didn't have to see theirs, I could just be myself.

Right out of high school I had landed a job as an assistant for my idol, Tsunade. Currently she ran the most listened to radio show in the country. That woman was never afraid to speak her mind, she just went for it. That was something I wished I could always do. Sure the job was nothing too exciting, but if anyone wanted a career in talk radio, she was definitely your best bet.

I had been so excited when I got the call, scared my mom half to death with my screams, but when she heard the news, she was right there with me. We quickly set up a place for me to live and then made flights plans that very day. Sure they were three months in advance, but my mom didn't care. She smiled when I was around, but I knew she wasn't thrilled her, "little Tennie," was leaving the nest so soon.

O-O-O

When the plane landed, I felt as if I was all alone. No one was there to greet me, but this is what I had been waiting for, a chance to be on my own. Not only was I alone but I felt extremely out of place. Coming from a small town, this big city was so different. Everyone seemed like they were in a hurry, no time for anything. I pulled my bag tighter as I saw how nicely everyone was dressed, apparently jeans and t-shirt weren't too popular here. Maybe I would finally have somewhere to spend all my birthday money that I had saved up over the years.

I grabbed my bag and headed outside. I almost fainted from the view. I had never seen to many big buildings before in my life. It was all so overwhelming. The people around me were hailing cabs left and right. I watched a few before I tried it on my own, it was a lot harder than I thought. In the movies cabs just pull right up to the curb. The only one I could seem to flag down stopped in the middle of the road. I quickly ran over, carefully trying to avoid the other cars. I threw myself in and he stepped on the gas.

"Where to miss?" The cab driver was a short man. I couldn't see over the seat, but I bet he was sitting on a phonebook.

"Oh, um." I quickly fished out the paper with my new address on it. "Umm Brooks and 53." I managed to get out. This guy was good, I watched as he weaved in and out of traffic with ease. We finally ended up at my destination, a small apartment complex, but the pictures on the internet looked good.

I grabbed my bags and gave the cabbie the fare. He tipped his hat and sped off once again.

I took a deep breath before going into the main office. The lady at the front desk looked like she was bored to death. She was filing her nails as she spoke on the phone, obviously a personal call. I stepped up to the front desk, she didn't stop, she only smiled and brought up her index finger to show me I had to wait a minute.

It was a wonder she hadn't been fired yet.

She finally got off her call and then sat up straight.

"What can I do for you hun?" She typed away on the keyboard in front of her.

"I'm new here, Tenten Mitarashi." Wow, I felt like I was in high school all over again.

She smashed away on the keyboard. "Alright, here you go hun." She handed me my room keys and pointed me in the right direction.

As I opened the door, my stomach fluttered. It wasn't exactly like the pictures but it was perfect, just for me. I could definitely work with this. The walls were a pale peach color except for the kitchen which was stark white. It was just a one bedroom apartment, but it was fairly spacious. There was a table, a dresser, a bathroom, and a bed. I threw my things on the bed and jumped on it face first.

This was going to be great.

I was already halfway settled in, now was a good a time as ever to call home. I grabbed my phone out of my bag and dialed the number I knew by heart.

"Mom?"

O-O-O

I was late by the time I reached my new job. I was so embarrassed. I knew I should have woken up earlier, but I was so tired from traveling all day. I came bursting in the building out of breath and cheeks red from the cold.

Waiting for me was a tall slim blond. She looked scary in her high stiletto heels and dark makeup. I really didn't know what to make of her and her nice dress suit. If this what I was supposed to be wearing, I was extremely underdressed.

"Tenten Mitarashi, I presume?" I nodded.

She stuck out her hand. "Temari, Temari Suna." I shook her hand she immediately began to walk away. I quickly followed her. "Come on I've got someone else you need to meet."

After walking through almost every floor of that building we stopped near the top. The office was really nice, clean and very white. Like no one was supposed to tough it.

"This is your new office." Temari said with a smile. As I took in the breathtaking office another girl stood by Temari's side. She seemed a lot more friendly than Temari with her bubblegum pink hair.

"I'm Sakura Haruno." I shook her hand and gave her my name as well. "We're so glad to have another hand to help out around here. Welcome to the Tsunade's assistant club." She laughed. Temari rolled her eyes but smiled.

"Wait there three of us… She really needs three assistants?" This wasn't exactly what I was expecting.

"She _needs _about ten assistants, but chooses to be understaffed. She knows that whoever she hires will get the job done, no questions asked." Temari said with a smile.

Sakura slapped her arm. "Temari you're scaring her." She looked to me. "Really it's not that bad. It's a lot of fun once you get used to it."

"Speaking of fun, here's your first assignment. Tsunade likes her latte caramel flavored, with skim milk, three shots of espresso and a quarter inch of foam at that top. Got it?" I ran the order in my head again and nodded once I repeated it successfully. "Good, be prepared I might call you with another job on the way."

Oh goodie.

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_Basically I have nothing planned out for this story. :P  
I think it could turn out really good though.  
I hope you all liked the first chapter :D_

_Please review and even if you don't check out some of my other stories. XD_

_If you've got one of the Konoha ninja's you want in this story, please put them in your review!  
I have a few planned out but a few more wouldn't hurt.  
It won't be anything major just a few lines here and there._

_turtlechick...out_


	2. Fitting in

_Geez, I'm super sorry for the wait. I get distracted easily ;)  
Anyway, I guess I decided the pairings in this story,  
although most of them will be super minor.  
I hope you guys like it!!  
Enjoy!!!  
Thanks to my awesome reviewers :D_

_Pairings: NejiTen, ShikaTema, NaruHina, SasuSaku, SaiIno.  
(Order of importance)_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. :P_

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**Everything You Want and More**

Chapter 2

By: turtlechick

Things were going good. It seemed like I was fitting in a little more with Temari and Sakura. To me, it felt like we were friends. I learned a lot about each of them in the short time we had spent together. Turns out Temari wasn't as scary as I thought she was. She was very opinionated and loud, but I could tell she was someone I could count on. Sakura was nice, like I had thought, but did have a temper, it was almost like she had two personalities.

Things here at the radio station were also going well. So far I had just gotten to run around the city running errands, but it was alright. The big city was a really nice change from my small farm town. There were so many people, it was still a bit overwhelming. I kept finding myself lost everyday. I usually had to call Sakura for directions.

I had also successfully learned how to whistle, hailing cabs just got a whole lot easier.

"Hey Tenten, Tsunade needs you to take these files down to the front desk." Sakura said, typing away on the computer, as she handed me the papers. Today had been particularly stressful. Tomorrow marked the day of Tsunade's 100th radio show, so it was almost an hour longer. That meant today we had plenty of things to do to prepare for it; setting up interviews, finding out if all the cues were set, and overall, making sure everything was going to go smoothly.

I hadn't seen Temari for the entire morning after we had said "hi," to each other. Since she had been here the longest, she got to work more closely with Tsunade. I didn't know exactly what she was doing but I'm sure it was important.

I quickly ran down the stairs, knowing they were faster than the stuffy elevator. I successfully dropped off the papers and eyed the clock. It was almost time for our lunch break. It wasn't much, but certainly helped on such hectic day like this one. Let's see, it was Thursday and that meant I had been working here for about four days. It was funny, it felt like a lot more. By now I had learned everyone's name and felt right at home.

I took the elevator back up, saving myself the exhaustion this time, It was about twenty floors after all. When I opened the doors to our tidy office I finally saw Temari. She and Sakura had grabbed their things and were about to leave for lunch.

"Hold on guys I'll grab my purse." The purse had been Temari's idea. She said a real lady carried a bag. I didn't really like it, but it was convenient.

"Actually Tenten, Sakura and I have some things to do." Temari said. If they did have something to do, why couldn't I go? Maybe they just didn't want me to tag along.

"Oh, ok, I guess I'll see you when you get back." I tried to put up my best smile, but it kind of hurt. I knew I had just gotten here, but I didn't like feeling left out in a new city all the same.

After they left I grabbed my wallet and headed out to the hot dog stand across the street. I guess this was the good part of getting left out. Sakura didn't eat meat, and I had always wanted to try one of these hot dogs.

They were better than I expected, the only bad part that was I spilled a huge glob of mustard on my blouse.

How attractive.

I quickly hurried back inside, I wasn't keeping track of time. As soon as I rushed through the door I ran into someone, and came crashing into the ground as I'm sure the other person did as well. I hadn't looked up yet but, whoever I ran into had extremely large breasts.

"I'm sorry." I said, pulling myself up off of the ground. "I should have been looking where I was…" The person I had run into was none other than Tsunade herself. I panicked. I had just run into my boss. "O-o-oh my gosh, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to, I…"

She brushed herself off and stared at me like I had a set of wings on my back, then laughed. She was laughing at me? This was just great.

"You're my new assistant, Tenten, right?" She knew my name? How crazy was this?

"Yeah." I said, still in complete awe. I saw for a moment, as she looked down at my shirt.

"Have a good lunch I assume?" Oh, she was talking about my lovely mustard stain.

"Yeah." I said trying to smile, but this was so nerve-racking.

"Well Tenten, I'm needed elsewhere, but, I'll remember you." She smiled at me and then turned off and headed to the elevator. It was only after the elevator went up did I realize that I needed to be on it. I guess I was taking the stairs again.

O-O-O

The next day it was like everything was fine again, but when the next Thursday rolled around, they did the same thing. Something special must go down on Thursday's that I'm not supposed to know about. It wasn't until the third Thursday did I learn what I missing out on.

I grabbed my wallet, already anticipating that I would be left behind again today.

"Hey Tenten, come on. You're coming with us today." Sakura said from the elevator.

"Ok." I said, following them. I couldn't help but be a little angry at the both of them, for not including me earlier, but at the same time, they were all I had at the moment. I had the feeling I was going to have to learn to forgive and forget in this town. Also, I was kind of excited to see the secret they had been keeping me for all those weeks.

Temari quickly grabbed a cab and we all slid in. Almost immediately after we did Temari began texting away on her phone. It was probably Sakon, Temari's college boyfriend. Sakura had mentioned him a couple times before, and she didn't exactly like him. Sakura had her suspicions that he was always with other girls. Temari of course, wouldn't hear of it.

"So where are we going?" I asked hesitantly.

Sakura laughed. "It's a surprise, and Tenten? We're both really sorry for ditching you the past couple of weeks. We would have brought you the first day, but we had to make sure it was alright with everyone."

"It's fine, really." It sounded like I was being inducted into some sort of secret society.

When we stopped, I was sort of confused, all that was here was a few small private buildings. I thought we were having lunch?

"You coming Tenten?" Temari said opening one of the doors on a particularly dank looking building.

"Oh, yeah." I said following them in. The outside was completely different from the inside. It was one of the most beautiful modern buildings I had seen in a while. Most of the walls were white, except for a few strategically placed stripes, along with tons of artwork strung across the walls. It was really awesome.

I was so busy staring at the walls, I forgot to look at the other people in the room. Along with Temari and Sakura, sitting at a rather large banquet table, full of food, were seven other people. I guess they were the people Sakura had mention earlier.

"Guys this is Tenten Mitarashi, she's Tsunade's newest assistants. Well come on Tenten, sit down." Sakura said.

I blushed, I probably looked like some weirdo. I took a second to look around to the other people around the room, they seemed so different from each other.

"Let me introduce everyone." Said a perky platinum blond, sitting near a boy asleep, with his head on the table. "I'm Ino Yamanaka, and this is my building, well actually I just work here, but what ever." She laughed. "I'm working up to be an art buyer for the celebrities. This lazy ass, is Shikamaru." She smacked him on the back of the head, but he didn't budge, only made a small moan.

"He works night shifts." Sakura said, next to me.

"Oh." I said, seeing now, why he was so tired.

"That little cutie over there is Hinata Hyuuga." Sakura said, pointing to a small girl with violet hair. She looked so fragile, so meek. She never met by eyes, by that, she was probably really shy.

"Aw, Sakura I wanted to do it." Ino said sticking her tongue out in Sakura's direction.

"Shut up, Pig." Ino glared at Sakura. If I had to take a guess, I would say that these two went way back.

"I'm Naruto," said a rather loud blond boy, "Naruto Uzumaki." He smiled and I smiled back.

"The two Mr. Social's back there are Sai and Sasuke. They don't talk much." Temari finally said, taking her attention off her cellular phone.

Sai was a tall skinny guy who was super pale. Maybe a model or something. Sasuke had jet back hair spiked back. He wore dark clothes, looked like for an office setting. That was it, I had met everyone. I really didn't know what to think at first, no one was talking.

People started to eat and chatting quietly, I followed, not wanting to look out of place.

"Hinata?" Temari said all of a sudden. "Where's your bastard of a cousin?" She said snickering.

Hinata looked up from her food, a little shocked. I didn't know if it was because Temari had called her cousin a bastard or the fact that someone had spoken to her.

"U-uh, Neji said he was coming today when I spoke to him earlier." She said, her voice trailing off towards the end.

The door came open slowly and before I could look up I heard Temari say, "speak of the devil, nice of you to join us Neji."

"Very funny Temari." I heard a voice say.

I looked up from my food and looked at the new addition to the room, after that I almost choked on the piece of carrot currently in my mouth. I was surprised at how good looking he was. If I didn't feel like an outsider before, I sure did now.

"You ok there Tenten?" Sakura said giggling.

As soon as I was able to breathe again, I nodded my head.

"Neji this is Tenten, play nice now." She smiled at him as Naruto laughed his head off. Neji stopped that with a quick glare. Neji was dressed very nicely, he wore a button up white shirt with the cuffs rolled up to the forearm. I guess I could ask Sakura or Temari what he did later.

"Crap, look at the time, my next appointment is gonna be here soon." Ino said.

"That's our cue, come on Tenten." Temari said grabbing my arm, and soon everyone was out of there.

We had a bit of time before we had to be back, so we decided to walk instead of take a cab, even though Sakura didn't want to. I guess she shouldn't have worn such high heels.

"Sorry we didn't really explain earlier Tenten, but Ino's business is really strict." Sakura said.

"That's ok, so how did you guys all meet each other?" I asked.

"It was this huge party at the end of the year. It was really for our bosses but we all got dragged along. We were there for Tsunade of course, Ino for her job and Sai for his modeling stuff. Naruto works as an intern for some party planning company so that's how he got in on it. Let's see, Sasuke works for a prestigious business company, so that's why he got to tag along. Neji works for his uncle's law firm, simple as that. The Hyuuga company has been around forever." Temari answered.

So he worked for a law firm? I guess that's why he was dressed so nicely. Wait she forgot about Shikamaru, and come to think about it, she didn't say much of anything to him while we were there. Looks like I had another question for Sakura later.

"Come on you two we're going to be late." Temari said, pulling ahead from both of us. I still didn't know how she managed to go so fast in those stilettos.

* * *

_Don't worry it'll start to pick up, but I'd like to drag this story out,  
to get the NejiTen smexiness time to develop. :D  
I hope I didn't make Temari or Sakura too mean,  
I can't stand girls like that, so that's the last time they'll act like that. :)  
I hope you all liked it!!!_

_**UPDATE:** So I guess you all noticed Narto didn't come on. Pooey. I originally heard May, but now I'm not too sure... I also heard from Deyanira-chan that it would come to adult swim when Code Geass was all finished. So hang in there DUBCAKES!!!  
(Thanks Deyanira-chan for the info) :D_

_Oh yeah and, **Belonging** is still up for adoption. I might update once more to bring some eyes back to it, but I really need someone to take it off my hands. I don't want to have to delete it..._

_Please review and even if you don't, check out some of my other stories. XD_

_turtlechick...out_


	3. Making Conversation

_Geez, I'm so sorry guys, this update took forever. :(  
I do have a legitimate excuse though.  
First it was a terrible case writers block, and when I finally got out of it,  
wouldn't you know it was like 10 at night. Then the next day,  
My driver got all screwed up. D:  
Anyway, it's all fixed now, so enjoy!  
I made this one pretty long to make up for the wait. :D  
Oh, and please read the authors note at the end of this chapter!_

_Thanks to my awesome reviewers. :D_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto._

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Everything You Want and More

Chapter 3

By: turtlechick

I had only gone to lunch with the whole group once, and boy was there a lot to know. Sakura and Temari were more than happy to fill me in. For instance, in a million years, I would have never guessed that Ino and Sai were dating. They barely spoke to each other that day I went. Then Sakura explained to me that they had been in a small fight the day before. Another thing they were excited to tell me, was that Hinata had the biggest crush on Naruto, and he was so clueless, it wasn't even funny. They told me that's why she was so shy, she wasn't always like that, mostly just when she was around Naruto. Apparently it was Sakura, Temari and Ino's mission to get them together.

I learned a few things about Sakura and Temari as well, from each other. Temari had explained that Sakura had always liked Sasuke. Which I found a little strange since she was so chipper, and he well, wasn't.

I was even more surprised when Sakura pulled me to the side and explained the Shikamaru and Temari ordeal. According to Sakura, they were made for each other. She was pretty sure that Shikamaru had feelings for Temari. All she had to now was get Sakon out of the way and then they would just magically be together. I wasn't sure if that's how it would play out, but Sakura seemed convinced.

O-O-O

It was just another day at the office, a Wednesday to be exact. I was kind of excited for tomorrow. Hopefully, I would be able to redeem myself from last week. Staring at walls and choking on carrots wasn't exactly the way I wanted to be remembered.

I was sitting at my desk, as were Temari and Sakura. It was quiet today, not much was going on. Tsunade was in the middle of a show and we had done all that we could do to help her prepare. Sakura was filing her nails as Temari texted away on her phone.

I almost jumped out of my seat when my computer made this happy beeping noise. I calmed down when I realized it was an email from my mom. I wasn't sure what was policy on personal messages at work, but I opened it anyway.

_I put some money into your bank account. I hope you don't mind, but I didn't think you would. Hope everything is going well. Talk to you soon._

_- Love, Mom._

"Wow, your mom's really nice Tenten." Now, I seriously jumped out of my chair. I hadn't even noticed Sakura sneak up behind me.

"Oh, thanks Sakura, she is pretty great." I said in reply.

"So what are you going to use the money for?" She asked with a smile. I glanced over at Temari who had just received a call on her cell phone. I then put my attention back on Sakura, who was still waiting for answer, as to what I was going to do with the extra money.

"Um, I don't know yet, I'll probably save it, I guess."

"Save it?! Come on Tenten, you should spend it on something fun!" She said hitting my arm playfully.

I saw Temari end her phone call with a smile on her face. "Hey that was Naruto. Guess where we're going tonight?" She said.

"NO way!?" Sakura squealed at the top of her lungs. "Really?!" She yelled again. What were they talking about?

"Yes way!" Temari said with a laugh.

Sakura continued to jump around like a crazy person.

"What's going on guys? I'm in the dark here." I said, finally.

"Well we told you that Naruto works for a party planning company. Well it's mainly for the openings of events. And tonight happens to be the opening of a new club downtown."

So that's hat they were so excited about? We're clubs all that much fun? There sure weren't any in my small town. Probably anything close to a club I've seen, was the dumb dances we had at my school.

"So, is everyone coming Temari?" Sakura asked.

"Yeah, I think Naruto called everyone. Oh wait. I'll call Sakon too." I saw Sakura roll her eyes. I guess I would finally be meeting the infamous "Sakon" tonight.

I heard Sakura squeal again. "What?" I asked, with a chuckle.

"We need to find something to wear!" She said excitedly.

"What's wrong with the clothes we're wearing?" Apparently that wasn't right. Sakura looked like I had just killed her dog. If she had a dog of course.

"Come on Tenten, this is your first real party! You should want to get all dressed up. You don't want to be seen by boys looking like that do you?!"

I took a moment to look down at my clothes. They didn't seem that bad. We had to dress a little nicer for work, but they weren't bad, if I did say so myself. Why couldn't I go in these clothes?

"Tenten, you've got a lot to learn, that's for sure." Sakura chuckled. "I guess we found an outlet for some of your extra cash."

Shopping with Temari and Sakura? I wonder how this was going to turn out.

O-O-O

"Try these ones on Tenten." Sakura said as she threw a few more outfits over the dressing room door. Sakura had started picking things out for me, after she saw some of the things I had wanted. I guess we had different tastes. I had taken a second to check the prices on some of the things she was giving me, these things were so expensive. How much money did she think my mom gave me? I put that aside from my mind, threw on the next outfit, and headed out, to get the ok.

"Ooh, I like that one," cooed Sakura.

"I don't like it." Temari said.

Personally, I agreed with Temari. The dress Sakura had picked out for, was way too… glamorous for my tastes. It was a sparkly, sequined silver dress, that probably would blind half of the people on a street corner during a sunny day.

I moaned and headed back in the dressing room. This time trying on a dark blue slip. It didn't seem so bad as I pulled the dress over my head. The fabric was nice and not scratchy like the other ones from earlier. It hit just under my knees and wasn't too low cut in the front. I stepped out and waited for the judgment.

"Hmm…" Sakura mused. "It could work… Temari do you still have that belt, the one with the buckle?" Don't all belts have buckles?

"Yeah, I do." Temari answered.

"Perfect. Now all we need to think about, is shoes…" Sakura went back into thought. She snapped her fingers. "I got it! My cowboy boots would be perfect."

Cowboy boots? We weren't going to the rodeo.

Sakura could sense my doubt. "Don't worry Tenten, it'll look great. You'll have every guy there tonight, looking at you." I would? That didn't sound like fun, at all. She clapped her hands together. "Well. Now that's all taken care of, it's our turn."

"I've had my outfit on hold, so you guys can go finish up." Sakura said, as she skipped to the counter.

I sat down at one of many chairs placed around the store, exhausted, and watched Temari as she shopped. She was quick, skimming through the racks, stopping to only look through a few. She picked up a few things and headed into the dressing room. She came out after a minutes.

"What do you think?" She asked me.

She was wearing a three quarter length sleeve, short, blue blazer, with a delicate purple tank top underneath. Her skirt was brown and had a little bit of hemming near the seam. I thought it looked great. Why couldn't Sakura pick out something like for me? Although I did like my outfit as well.

"You guys done yet?" Sakura said waving from the other end of the store.

Temari was already headed towards the counter, I quickly followed, not wanting to be left behind.

Sakura and Temari dropped me off at home, after our little outing.

"We'll be here a little before eight, to pick you up Tenten." Temari said with a smile. Sakura waved from the passenger side window as Temari pulled off into the street. I looked down at my bag, with my new cloths in it, in my hands. Let's see it was five o'clock now. I was going to probably need all three hours to get ready. I had no idea where to start.

O-O-O

By the time eight rolled around I was a little nervous. I think I did alright as far as my outfit went. I had put on the dress, and as uncomfortable as I felt, I thought I looked pretty good. I usually never wore dresses, it just wasn't something I did. My doorbell rang at exactly eight and there were Sakura and Temari, with belt and shoes in hand.

After they were done with me, we all hopped in Temari's tiny silver car. The top was down, like always. Temari preferred it that way, at all times. Unless it was raining or something, then Temari's leather seats would be jeopardy of being ruined.

Temari always dressed nicely, she had a nice car and, and from what I heard, she lived in a great apartment. I only wondered where she got the money. She never mentioned any kind of parental guardian, but I knew she did have two younger brothers.

When we arrived at the door was a rather large bouncer. Temari didn't seem to notice at all, she gave him our names and he let us pass. As soon as we went through the doors, our ears were filled with loud earthshaking music. At that moment, the music was all I could hear. I tried to stay close to Sakura and Temari, as we weaved through the crowd.

We finally ended up at a table booth thing situated near a far corner of the club. Sitting there was Neji, Sasuke, Shikamaru, Ino, Sai and two other guys I didn't know. I did know, however, that I didn't like them. Something about them, just didn't set right with me.

One was tan with his hair pulled back in a high ponytail, much like Shikamaru's. Speaking of Shikamaru, he didn't look happy at all. The other was pale and had silver hair, something about his face, made me sick. I was even more sick when I saw Temari crawl into his lap and give him a kiss right on the lips. This was Sakon? I couldn't believe it.

"This is Sakon?" I whispered to Sakura, who looked just as happy as Shikamaru. Wait. Was that why he was so upset? Because Sakon was here?

"Unfortunately." She said, rolling her eyes at the sight of the couple.

"Tenten, this is Sakon." Temari said introducing us. He didn't put out his hand and I sure wasn't going to. "And this is his best friend Kidoumaru." One side of his mouth curved up in a smile, and I was immediately uncomfortable.

"Where is the knucklehead?" Sakura asked. I think she meant Naruto.

"He's floating around, he said he'd stop by later." Ino said. I saw her holding hands with Sai, I guess everything was fine with the two of them.

There was an awkward silence as all of us sat. No one knowing what to do next, there was so much tension coming from every corner of the table. Finally it was broken by none other than Ino.

"Well Sakura, I'm ready to have some fun." She got up and let go of Sai's hand, and grabbed Sakura's. "What do you say Tenten? Want to tag along?"

"Where are you two going?" I asked.

"Dancing, duh." Sakura said.

"Dancing, uh, no thanks." I said waving my hands in front of my face, trying to show them I really didn't want to go.

"Ok, you're loss." Sakura said, joking as she and Ino rushed into the crowd of people on the dance floor.

I was the only girl left, not counting Temari, since she and Sakon weren't really in the group anymore. It was a surprise to me that they weren't already naked, by the way they were acting. The whole thing just made me sick to my stomach. I thought I knew Temari a little better than that. Sakon wasn't someone I could have ever seen her with. I knew now why Sakura hated him so much, he just wasn't right for Temari.

I couldn't take anymore of watching that. "I'm going to the bathroom." I said, even though I don't think anyone was listening to me. I'm pretty sure Shikamaru was on the verge of leaving as well. Atleast, he could go whenever he wanted to. My ride was sucking face with some dirt bag, and they didn't look like they were going to be done anytime soon.

When I got out of the bathroom, standing there waiting for me was the last person I wanted to see; Kidoumaru. He was leaning against the wall, but as soon as he saw me he stood up and began strolling towards me. I guess it was too late to run.

"Hi there." He said, his lip curling up the same way it did before. My skin crawled.

"Hi…" Was all I gave him back. He moved closer making me back into a wall. Then he kept walking forward, until he was so close to me, I could feel his breath on my face.

"I've got a room reserved upstairs, wanna go drink some champagne?"

All I could think of was what else he probably wanted to do to me.

"Umm, no thanks, I'll pass." I tried to move past him but he kept me close to the wall.

"Come on now." He said, his eyes narrowing.

"No thank you. Now I think you should let me leave." I told him as strongly as I could, but my voice was cracking more with every word I said.

He laughed in my face, all I did was wince away from him. He brought his hand up to my face and touched my skin lightly on the cheek. I just wanted to get out of there. I shut my eyes tight, not wanting to think about what was to come next. All of a sudden I felt his hand be jerked away from my face, and I finally opened my eyes.

Kidoumaru was now turned around, facing Neji. So he was the one who saved my butt, and probably my virginity as well?

"My cousin is not here for you to harass, so you try it on Tenten?" He said harshly. Kidoumaru had tried the same thing with sweet little Hinata? Now I get why I didn't like him.

"You should learn to mind your own business Hyuuga." Kidoumaru spat back.

Neji said nothing back, but gave him a glare that could send shivers up a person's spine. Kidoumaru walked away, but not before jamming his shoulder into Neji's as he walked away. It looked like it hurt, because Neji winced with pain for just a moment.

"Are you alright?" He asked, after he was sure Kidoumaru was gone.

"Yeah, how's your shoulder?" I said looking at it for a moment.

"I'll be fine, let's go." I nodded in agreement.

We started back to the table, but knew as soon as we saw the crowd, that we might never get through. Finally, Neji just decided to get a new table.

After that little incident we started talking, well I did most of talking. I thought I might have been annoying him, and expected him at any minute, just to walk away. He seemed to really be listening to me. And even though he didn't talk much, he still made the conversation worthwhile. He was quiet, that was for sure, but I didn't know why. I thought maybe he was shy like his cousin, but it something different. I felt like he just didn't talk, unless he had something to say.

The music was so loud, I had to raise my voice every time I spoke, but Neji, his voice was so strong, so commanding, all I could hear was him when he spoke.

Where I came from, I was one of the smartest people in our school. I had always been the best, but Neji he gave me a run for my money, when it came to that sort of stuff.

"There you are Tenten." Sakura said, interrupting our conversation. "We've been looking all over for you. It's late and we were gonna go. Are you ready?" I noticed Temari at her side.

Just a moment ago all I wanted was to leave and go back home. But now, all I wanted to do was stay. I guess I did have to leave though. I was a little tired.

"Yeah, I guess so." I said. I got up from the booth I was sitting with Neji at. I stopped before walking away, and smiled. "Thanks again Neji, bye." He just smirked and watched as I walked away with Temari and Sakura.

So that was a club?

Wow.

* * *

_I hope that made up for the wait. D:  
I'm really sorry again guys...  
Anyway, I hope you all like it. :)_

_Note: Now that I'm out of my little rut, should be popping stories out like hotcakes.  
__I have a few Nejiten and Shikatema oneshots floating round in my noggin, so I should get those up in the next couple of days. :D_

_**UBER GOOD NEWS**: The person that wanted to adobt belonging before, is still willing to do it. SO, YAY!  
I'll be sure to put up a link on my profile when it gets all set up. :)_

_Please review and even if you don't, check out some of my other stories. XD_

_turtlechick...out  
_


	4. Uh oh

_Yeah, I know this took forever.  
This writers block for this story has really got me down.  
Hopefully I'm out of it...  
I added a little twist in the story, so watch out!  
Thanks to all you awesome reviewers. :D_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto._

**

* * *

**

**Everything You Want and More**

_Chapter 4_

By: turtlechick

"Are you serious?" I whined into the phone as I tried to carry all the dry-cleaning I was forced to pick up. Things were a rush today, because for some reason, Tsunade wasn't in the best mood. Us being her assistants, were thrown on the streets and told not to come back until all of her personal things were taken care of. I guess I could call myself lucky though, Sakura was stuck back at the office, having to deal with Tsunade herself.

"_Yeah, I can't make it. The traffic on the other side of town is horrible. I'll probably be late anyway." _Temari said on the other end of the phone.

"Ok, I'll get it." Now, along with the tons of dry cleaning in my hands, I had to go pick up a sample cake that Tsunade had ordered for a party that she was supposed to be throwing. That job would most likely be put on the three of us, if her mood didn't improve.

I checked my watch, and if I didn't hurry, I was going to be in big trouble when I got back to the office. The bakery was a good five minutes from where I was now, so if I hurried, got the cake, I just might make it.

As I weaved in and out of the traffic of people on the street, I took the time to actually look at the people as they passed me. A lot of them were business men, in too big of a rush to even try to hail a cab. There were a few mother and child pairs, but I wasn't sure if the "mother" figure, was in fact a mother and not a nanny. No one knew in this town anymore. I was sort of disappointed in the people here. They all came from good backgrounds, and yet they took so much for granted, like children. Most people just wanted to gain more power, and along with that, more money.

When I ended up at the bakery, I was exhausted. For only one woman, Tsunade sure had a lot of clothes that needed to be dry cleaned. I heaved them all on the counter, completely out of breath.

It didn't look like the high class bakery that it actually was. The walls were made out of deep red bricks, that tied in with the rest of the theme. The black tile floors were swept and the old wooden tables cleared off. No one was there, probably because the only people that could afford to eat these sweets, wouldn't ever do it in public.

"I need to pick up a cake, under the name, Tsunade." I huffed, not even giving the person at the counter a smile. In fact, I didn't even look at them.

"Rough day?" The person at the counter asked, as they punched away on the register, calculating how much this was going to cost my boss.

"You have no idea. My boss is on a rampage today. I'm just thankful I'm here, and not back at the office." I finally looked up and was slightly surprised at what I saw. I knew that the person I had been talking to was a boy, but I didn't expect him to be so cute.

He let out a chuckle. "Sounds like fun. I'll go get that for you." He came back with the cake sample and set it on the counter. He had short dark brown hair and almond colored eyes. Every time he smiled, his cheeks grew into the most adorable dimples. "That'll be eighty-six dollars."

"Eighty six? Wow, the lengths she'll go to for a good cake." I handed him the office credit card without another thought, to the price.

"And just think, this is just the sample cake." He said, with another small laugh.

"Oh, yeah." This time I laughed.

"I'm Hajime." As the receipt made it's way out of the register, he stuck his hand out for me to shake, and happily I returned the gesture.

"Tenten." I said with a smile.

He brought the cake around to the front of the counter. He was dress very casually, in a pair of jeans with a T-shirt; the bakery's logo on the front, all under a dark green apron. Before he made it to me, he tripped. He would have dropped the cake, if it hadn't have been for him sliding right into a nearby chair.

"Nice save." I said, taking the cake from his hands. "I'm guessing that happens often?"

He got up and brushed himself off. "More than it should." He replied, looking embarrassed.

"Well, I've got to go, before I get myself into trouble." I said, almost not wanting to leave.

"Maybe I'll see you around?" He said, helping me with the door.

"Well, I'm sure I'll get stuck with picking up the actual cake." This was just the eighty-six dollar sample after all.

"Alright, see you then." He smiled again.

I started down the street, but quickly realized that with the dry cleaning, and the cake… I was going to need a cab. If I didn't get one, I was either going to end up late, or with Tsunade's cake all over the pavement.

I struggled, desperately trying to make a cabbie stop for me. I couldn't even whistle with my hands so full. I was such a mess. I kept having to blow my hair out of my face, so I could atleast see the cabs as they whizzed passed me. It was beginning to become more of a hassle. If I didn't get one soon, it wouldn't be worth it.

Finally, after all my struggles a cab pulled up to the curb and I hopped in. I gave him directions and leaned back, it was the first time I had been able to breathe all day. We came to a stop light, but even after it had turned green, we barely moved. It seemed that the traffic from the other side of town, had finally reached us.

As I stared out of the window, I saw a familiar face on the sidewalk, it was Neji. He was dressed nicely, just like always. He didn't seem to happy though, he was talking sternly into his phone, with an angry expression etched on his face. I watched as he checked his watch. Was he late for something too? It didn't seem like we were going anywhere anytime soon.

I quickly rolled down the window and stuck my head out. "Hey Neji! Need a ride?"

He looked surprised to see me at first, with my head hanging out of the window of one of the many yellow cabs in the city. He looked once more at his watch, and then his phone. Then with a quick rub of temples he made his way in the street to my cab. He opened the door and slid in.

"Running errands, I assume?" He motioned towards the clothes and large cake box that took up most of the room in the backseat.

"Yeah, today has been kind of crazy."

"Hmm." He laid his head back on the seat, it looked like he was having a pretty stressful day as well.

"So what about you Neji? You don't seem like you're in the best spirits either. Anything happen?" I asked quietly, hoping I hadn't crossed any lines.

"It's just that my uncle set me up with my first solo case. I want to do a good job, but nothing seems to be going right. I was supposed to be on my way to my clients house, for a meeting. But the car that was supposed to pick me up, got stuck in this traffic."

"Oh… well Neji, I haven't seen you in action, but I'm sure you're a great lawyer. And any person would be lucky to have you represent them. It isn't your fault that you're a little late, I'm sure they'll understand."

"Hn." He rubbed his eyes, he obviously hadn't gotten a lot of sleep the past couple of days.

We sat in silence for the rest of the ride, until the cab came to a halt in front of my office.

"Well, I guess I'll see you on Thursday Neji." I got out of the cab and gathered all of the clothes and cake box in my arms. I struggled closing the door of the cab, but finally got it.

"Tenten, give me that box." I turned around to see Neji, out of the cab and on the sidewalk next to me.

"Neji, you don't have to do this. It's fine really, I can get these." I protested his help, after I learned how stressed he had been.

Before I could get away, he grabbed the cake box from on top the pile of clothes and started for the door. We made our way to the elevator, and piled in, waiting for the contraption to start on its way up.

"Thank you, Neji." I said, finally. I really should be thankful that he had helped me.

"You're welcome, Tenten." He said as the elevator door opened. We both stepped out and were immediately hounded by both Temari and Sakura.

"Tenten! Where have you been?!" Sakura shrieked, she was in worst shape than I was, I could tell from her obviously tangled hair and untidy clothes.

"Tsunade has been asking for that cake for ages!" Temari said, taking the dry cleaning from my arms.

"Neji?" Sakura had finally noticed him. "What are you doing here?"

He looked at me for the answer. "Uh, we shared a cab, and then he helped me bring this stuff up here." I said to Sakura, who was suspicious of the whole ordeal, but quickly pushed it aside and her mind went back to our bickering boss.

Sakura then took the cake from Neji and quickly rushed it back to Tsunade. Neji and I were alone once again. I heard the elevator door click open once again.

"Tenten?" I turned around to see Neji, his hand stopped the door from closing. "Thank you, I needed to hear that today."

I couldn't help but smile, it felt good making Neji feel good about himself. He seemed so much happier. He stepped through the doors and they shut, leaving me alone in the front office. Taking a much needed break, I sat down at my desk and slumped down in my chair. I guess today, wasn't all that bad, despite the mounds of clothes and the cake mishap. For one thing I got to see Neji again and I even met, Hajime.

Then it hit me; two boys. Uh-oh.

* * *

_Yes indeed, Neji has got himself some competition.  
Don't worry Nejiten fans, Hajime is only temporary. ;)  
I added him for some flavor, and to make this story a little bit longer.  
I was running out of ideas...  
I hope you guys liked it!_

_**In Other News: **Another story is on it's way. During summer I should have time for both, so hopefully I can get them done!  
The next one will be jam packed with action, just like I like, and hopefully you will to.  
;)_

_Please review and even if you don't, check out some of my other stories. XD_

_turtlechick...out._


	5. Something to Think About

_Sorry for the wait... again. D:  
I was really trying to start a new story,  
and I got done with the first chapter.  
Then wouldn't ya know... it didn't save correctly.  
So then I just gave up . :P  
I hope you guys like this chapter though ;D  
The drama begins. XD_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto._

**

* * *

**

**Everything You Want and More**

Chapter 5

By: turtlechick

"Tenten are you alright? You seem sort of quiet today." Temari said, throwing her arm around my neck. The three of us were on our way to have lunch with the others. I guess I was being a little more silent than usual, but a few things were on my mind. One of them being Neji, whom I was going to have to see in a few short minutes.

"Oh, I'm fine, really." I said to Temari with a smile.

"Well you know Tennie, you can tell me anything."

"Yeah, I know."

"Hey, come on you two! Hurry up!" Sakura yelled from the open door.

"Hey, be quiet Sakura! Tennie and I were having a moment!" Temari yelled back. Sakura stuck out her tongue at Temari and slipped in the door. To make us go a little faster, Temari crossed her arm with mine and began to walk quicker towards the building.

I wasn't looking forward to this…

"You two are so slow." Sakura said, already sitting down at the table, next to Sasuke of course. After Temari's advice to "tone down the fangirl-ness," Sasuke had become a little more tolerant of her.

I quickly sat down next to Temari, who took a seat on the far edge of the table. Everyone grabbed their food and began to chatter amongst each other. The one time I looked up, my eyes caught Neji's. He kept his eyes there, but I tore mine away from his face.

Actually, I had no idea why I was so upset about this whole thing. It's not like there was anything serious going with Neji and I. Or Hajime for that matter. I wasn't sure if he even liked me. I knew Neji wasn't as cold as everyone had always labeled him, but he was probably too busy for a relationship anyway.

O-O-O

Back at the office, reality hit all three of us. That party, that Tsunade was supposed to be throwing, that I guessed would be thrown on the three of us. Well I was right. It was only in a few days and there were a lot of preparations that needed to be taken care of in the meantime.

"Tenten, I need you to go and deliver all of these invitations." Temari said, handing me a stack of about forty or more fancy yellow envelopes.

"Can't we mail these?" I said, not wanting to be the errand girl… again.

"Not if we want them to get to people on time. The addresses are on the envelopes, they shouldn't be too hard to find."

I groaned and headed out the door into the crowded streets. I was lucky it wasn't too hot out today, otherwise I would have to pay for another cab… Which really wasn't possible, considering my budget lately. As I walked down on the pavement, my heels clicking with each step I took, I began to flip through the invitations I was giving out.

Most of the people, I didn't know, they were just friends of Tsunade I was guessing. Some were people she had interviewed over the years; celebrities and the like. There was one however, I wasn't expecting.

_Hiashi Hyuuga._

Neji's uncle? I had to take one to his uncle? The invitation was made out to his office, that meant I had to go there. I began to panic. What if Neji was there? Would he speak to me, even after I gave him the cold shoulder at lunch today? Wait, why was I thinking about it so much? Why did I care?

"Ugh." This was becoming a head ache. I decided that I would deliver Hiashi's last. Maybe by then my nerves would be gone. Hopefully.

"Hey, Tenten!" I turned around to see the person that I didn't want to see, just as much as Neji… Hajime.

I couldn't pretend like I didn't hear him. It wouldn't hurt if I chatted with him for a few minutes.

"Hi, Hajime." He caught up to me, his brown layered bangs hung in front of his eyes. That in my opinion, were a little too far apart, but then again, it made him even that much cuter.

He glanced at the letters in my hand. "So what are you up to today?" A grin spread across his face.

"I'm delivering these for Tsunade. What about you? Shouldn't you be at the bakery?"

"Naw, I've got the day off. I'm just taking a stroll." We started walking again, side by side. "Say, need any help delivering those?" Come to think of it, I had no clue where half of these places are. Hajime is local, I bet he could help me out.

"Sure, I wouldn't mind the company as well."

He laughed, and just then… tripped on a crack in the sidewalk. "Ouch." He landed right on his face.

"Are you alright Hajime?" I helped him up, but couldn't stop myself from laughing at the situation. He certainly wasn't the most graceful person I had ever met.

He laughed along with me as soon as he got up on his feet. "Yeah, I'm fine. Now, let's see those invitations. Where to first?"

O-O-O

It was an understatement to say that I had fun with Hajime. He always kept me laughing and made this otherwise awful chore, into something enjoyable. We talked about everything from his family, to mine. Our likes, dislikes and everything in between. I almost didn't notice we had reached the last invitation. The one made out to Hiashi Hyuuga himself.

I never knew Hyuuga building was so big. It was easily the second biggest skyscraper in the city, or maybe even the tallest. It was modern, with glass windows and beautiful marble steps leading to the entrance. It was all a bit overwhelming to say the least.

"Are you coming Tenten?" Hajime called out to me from a couple of steps up.

"Oh, yeah." My heart pounded all the way to the top. I thought I was going to be sick to my stomach. My hands went clammy from the nerves.

"Tenten, are you alright?" Hajime said, as he held the large doors open for me. Apparently I had been spacing out, again.

"Yeah, I'm fine." We walked over to the informational desk to find out what floor Hiashi could be found on.

"How can I help you?" The woman at the desk, looked nice. The kind of person you could spill out your darkest secrets to, and she wouldn't judge you. She was also a little overweight, but that might be normal who sat at a chair and received calls everyday.

"We're looking for Hiashi Hyuuga?" I asked.

"Mr. Hyuuga can is located on the sixty-fifth floor." That far up? Wow.

"Thanks." Hajime said. We headed straight for the elevator and he punched in the correct floor. It grew silent as the elevator jumped we began our ascent. "Say, Tenten? Are you sure you're feeling alright? You've been acting funny ever since we got here."

"Well… I… just-" The doors opened Hajime and I were no longer alone.

"Come on. Let's go find Mr. Hyuuga." He grabbed my wrist and pulled me all the way to the front office.

"Uh, we have a delivery for Hiashi Hyuuga." I said to the woman, who really didn't seem to be listening at me at all. The phones were ringing off the hook, it was no wonder she wasn't paying any mind to me or Hajime.

"Mr. Hyuuga is supposed-" She was cut off before she was able to finish.

"Tenten?" I turned around, to see Neji himself. "What are you doing here?" He was dressed nicely, just like always. His hair was neatly pulled back, away from his eyes.

"Oh, Ne-ji, hi." He glanced at Hajime at my side.

"Hajime, this is Neji. Neji this is Hajime." I squeaked out.

"You two know each other? Wow, Tenten I didn't know you hung out with snooty people, like the Hyuugas." Hajime began to laugh. Neji, wasn't going to like that little comment.

"Hn." Neji's eyes traveled down to my wrist, where Hajime was still holding on. Then, the glares began to fly. I quickly yanked my hand from Hajime's grasp. This couldn't turn out good.

"Uh, Neji, I need to give something to your uncle." I held up the envelope.

"My uncle is an important meeting." His eyes, still glued on Hajime.

"Well, where can I leave it for him?" I said, trying to calm down the situation.

"I'll give it to him myself." Neji said.

"Oh, really, thanks Neji." He ripped his eyes from Hajime's and looked at me, only his gaze lightened. I blushed, trying to escape his alluring features.

"We should be on our way. Right Tenten?" Hajime said.

"Uh, yeah. Go get the elevator, I'll be right there." I told him, wanting a moment with Neji. "Neji?"

"Hmm?"

"The other day when you were worried about that client. How did it go?" I hoped it went well, otherwise, I shouldn't have asked.

"It went fine, everything worked out. I'm still waiting for the jury to give me an answer, but I think it should be alright."

"I'm glad." I smiled at him.

"Tenten!" Hajime yelled from the elevator door.

"I've got to go. I'll see you later?" He nodded.

Neither Hajime or I said anything in the elevator. Personally, just wanted to get out of there as fast as possible. There would definitely be some tension brewing between those two. As soon as the doors clicked open I shot out like a bullet and made my way down the marble steps to the streets below.

"Hey Tenten, let me walk you back." Hajime called from the top of the stairs.

"No, it's fine Hajime. I'll go by myself." Quickly, I blended into the streets, not wanting to have to talk anymore. I definitely had some things to think over.

* * *

_Dun, dun, DUN!  
Things are starting to heat up!  
I hope you all liked it!  
Thanks for reading. :D_

_**NOTE:** During my story Protection I informed you of a rumor I had heard about Naruto returning to TV. NOw of course, we know I was wrong. XD Recently though Viz Media came out with a statement saying that the Shippuuden episodes would be released around September 2009. So I'm not wrong this time!! I do know of a site that plans on buying the episodes and posting them up. If you'd like the site name, PM me and I'd be more than happy to give it to you. Currently they're taking donations to help them purchase it. So any help would be nice. ;)  
__  
I also think it may be the solution to my recent slump. D:_

_Please review and even if you don't, check out some of my other stories. XD_

_turtlechick...out._


	6. Saviors

_I was pretty quick this time!  
I do have a reason though.  
I'll be on a short hiatus while we have relatives staying with us.  
I'll be back once they leave. :D  
I do have a feeling that this chapter will be able to keep you satisfied. ^_^  
Thanks to all my awesome reviewers!!!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto._

**

* * *

**

Everything You Want and More

Chapter 6

By: turtlechick

"Bye Tenten!" Sakura and Temari said in unison as they waved goodbye to me.

"See you, Sakura, Temari!" I was so relived that today was finally over. Planning for this party was being more and more time consuming. It was definitely taking a toll on my sleep. Last night, for instance, I had a dream, that I had ordered the wrong napkins. It was a catastrophe.

I would be glad when this whole thing was over and done with.

I started down the street to this place that I found, where it was a little bit easier to hail a cab. Not that many people went there, so there was that much less competition.

As soon as I reached the street, I quickly rummaged around in my purse for my wallet. Another trick I learned, was that cabs are more likely to stop for you, if you have your money out and ready.

"That's just great." I muttered. I must have forgotten to grab that money off my dresser this morning. I didn't have enough for a cab at all. What was I going to do now? My apartment wasn't that far away, but I was so exhausted from today, I really didn't want to walk.

Just then I heard the brakes of something big, it sounded like, come to a halt. When I looked around, I saw it, my savior; the bus. I may have not had enough money for a cabbie, but I had just enough for the bus.

I quickly hurried over and followed a woman and her two children on the bus. I waited for them to put their money in the slot, and then I did the same. I took a seat near the back, all by myself and put my things down on the seat next to me. The other passengers began to pile on and now, the bus was almost full up.

The bus started to rattle as soon as the driver had turned the key and soon, it began to pull along the street.

Before, I guess I didn't realize how tired I actually was. As I watched the scenery pass my eyes began to droop, my mind, started drift… until, I had fallen asleep. It was the first time in the past couple of nights, that I didn't have a bad dream.

The dream I had was about my parents. I guess I really did miss them, if I was dreaming about them now.

O-O-O

"Miss, miss." Something shook me. My eyes fluttered open and the first thing I saw was an old man, the bus driver I think.

"Huh?" I said, still half asleep.

"Miss, you stayed on the whole route. I didn't see you before now, but we're at the bus house. You'll have to call for a ride home."

"Are you serious?! I slept through all the stops?!" This just wasn't my night.

"I'm afraid I am miss. You have some way of contacting someone to come here, and pick you up? I need to leave and lock up." The old man said.

"Yeah, I've got my cell phone." I didn't have a lot of use for my phone, but I guess situations like this, were the exact reasons I had the thing.

"Oh good, now come with me miss." We walked past all the monsters of transportation on our way out of the bus house.

I wonder what it's like to be a bus driver. Did this old man enjoy it? I guess if you really liked driving, it would be the perfect job. Personally, I don't think I could handle the responsibility, all those lives in my hands. It took a special group of people to be able to do that, and those people probably get overlooked, everyday.

"So you'll be alright now? I really have to be going?" The old man said. I could tell he was worried about me, but he probably had a family to go home to. I would be fine on my own.

"Yes, yes, I'll be just fine. Thanks a lot for waking me up." I chuckled a bit.

"You're welcome, I hope you get home safely." He waved then walked away out of my sight to his car.

I sat down on a nearby bench and began to fish around in my purse for my phone. This thing was like a black hole, I could never find anything I needed. When I finally found it, I noticed that battery was almost dead. I guess I had forgotten to charge it last night too. It still had one bar left, but as long as I could get a hold of somebody quick, I would be alright.

I sifted through my contacts until I came across Temari's number. I hit send and pressed the phone against my ear. It rang and rang until Temari's answering machine came up.

"_Hey, you've reached Temari! Obviously, I can't get to my phone, so tough luck. I guess if you really want to, you can leave your name and I'll try to get back to you. Ok… you can hang up now."_

Well that certainly was relaxing to hear…not.

I tried for Sakura next.

Just like Temari, she didn't answer, and soon her answering machine started.

"_Hi there you've reached Sakura! For some reason I can't answer right now, but I'll get back to you as soon as I can. Ok, here comes the beep!"_

Sakura too? It was odd for Temari not to have her phone with her, but Sakura? She always had it with her, no matter what.

I sat my phone on my lap, my frustration grew, I was running out of people to call. I pulled my jacket up farther, it was getting late and the temperature was dropping. It was quiet, not an animal or person were around. I really was alone and before I knew it, tears started to fall on my lap. I didn't know why I was crying. It's not like this was going to kill me. The worst thing that could happen was that I would have to wait here till the morning and hopefully use someone's phone. Still, I didn't like to feel so helpless.

I picked up my phone again, tears still running down my cheeks. The next number I came across was Hajime's. My thumb hit send and I waited for him to hopefully pick up. After a few seconds the phone began to make low beeps… the line was busy.

"Come on." I whispered, I waited a little longer until hanging up the phone once again.

The battery on my phone was just about gone, it probably had just enough for one more call. But who was I supposed to use it on? My mom and dad? What could they do? They couldn't do anything to help me now. I was going to have to rely on someone else… but who?

The next name I came across was Hinata's. It was a long shot, but just maybe she would answer. I quickly hit send and pressed my tiny phone to my ear. I waited and waited until, yet again, no one answered, and Hinata's answering machine came on.

"_This is Hinata's phone. I'll try to get back to you as soon as I can."_

The tears began to spill down my face. I just wanted to go home.

"Hinata, this is Tenten… I fell asleep on the bus on my way home. I know it's late, but I can't get a hold of anyone else." My voice grew frantic. "I'm at the bus station." While I spoke my phone made another beep and then vibrated. When I brought my cell away from my ear, the screen was black, the battery had finally died. I guess I really was going to have to spend the night here, all alone.

I started to cry again. If only I hadn't been so stupid. If I had just grabbed that money off the dresser this morning, I could have taken a cab and this would have never happened. Right now, I could be in my warm bed asleep, and not out here in the cold, bawling my eyes out. There was nothing I could do now, for now, I would just have to wait it out. I laid down across the bench, using my hands as a makeshift pillow. It took awhile, but soon I finally fell asleep.

O-O-O

"Tenten?" I knew that voice. My eyes flickered open, until I saw his face in front of mine.

"Neji?" I don't think my eyes could have gotten any bigger. How did he know I was here? But right now, I didn't really care. All that mattered was that he was here. Before either of us knew it, I had jumped up from the bench and had wrapped my arms around him. For a brief moment, I felt his heart sped up against his chest.

He was so warm, it was a nice change from the cold I had grown used to. I said his name again, and pulled him closer, so there no space between us. He shifted for second and soon his arms, were around me as well.

"Tenten, are you alright?" His chest vibrated when he spoke. I nodded against his chest, but again, the tears began to fall. He took his arms off of me and placed them on my shoulders and pulled me off him gently. He brought one hand and wiped away my tears. I was dumbfounded, couldn't move at all, the look he was giving me. It was so soft, so unlike Neji.

"Oh Neji." I threw my arms around him again.

"Tenten, let me take you home…" He broke away again and took off his jacket, then placed it on my shoulders. "Come on, my car is this way." I followed him the parking lot where his expensive car sat in the cold. He opened the door for me and then shut it once I was inside.

The ride back to my apartment was quiet, until I finally grew the courage to speak.

"Neji, how did you know I was there?" I kept my voice quiet.

"Hinata left her phone in my uncle's office. I found it before I left to go home. I saw that you had called and left a message, so I listened. I knew that it probably wasn't any of my business…"

"No, I'm glad you did." I brought my arms up to my chest. "Or else I would have been stuck out there." I had no clue what time it was, but the clock in Neji's car said it was around one in the morning. My heart skipped a beat. He had really come to get me this late?

For a brief moment, my mind went to Hajime. A part of me felt like I had betrayed him, but in reality, I had to think of who was here, Neji was, and Hajime wasn't. Simple as that.

"We're here Tenten." I guess I had spaced out longer than I though, we were already sitting in front of my apartment.

I wanted to do something for Neji. A simple thank you just didn't seem like a enough for what he had just done for me. My head turned to look at him, his face was forward, staring at the road in front of him. I slowly leaned over, and gave him a simple peck on the cheek. I pulled away but kept my face close to his, wanting to feel his warmth again, but I didn't want to cross the line.

All of a sudden another pair of lips crashed onto mine. They were Neji's. I closed my eyes and felt him bring his hand up and place it behind my head. My mind just couldn't comprehend what was going on. I felt so comfortable as we kissed, like nothing else mattered. No one else was there, just Neji and I.

We broke away for air, and stared into each other's eyes for a fleeting moment. He was one the one who tore his eyes away from mine and went back to looking out the window.

I took it as my cue to leave.

Before I left, I stuck my head back into the car.

"Neji?"

"Hn."

"Tha-ank you." He faced me again, that same look in his eyes that had confused me before and then… he smiled.

I smiled back and shut the door as I continued to my apartment. Boy, did I have a story for Sakura and Temari tomorrow.

O-O-O

I plopped myself down in my chair at the office. I didn't near enough sleep last night. I felt my phone vibrate in my purse. It was a text message, the number was one that I didn't know, but as soon as I read what it said, it wasn't too hard to figure out.

_I'll be there, whenever you need me._

"Hey Tenten, you called me last night. What did you need?" Sakura asked.

"Yeah, you called me too. What was up?"

Yeah, I had a lot to tell them.

* * *

_That was my first attempt at the romance that is due to come.  
I'm trying to work on that so, I hope I did alright...  
Well, once i get back, I should be putting up that new story I've been promising. :)  
I hope everyone liked this chapter._

_Please review and even if you don't, check out some of my other stories. XD_

_turtlechick...out._


	7. Distress

_Sorry this took so stinkin' long... :\  
I've been procrastinating with summer homework.  
I thought that I should maybe start it, whether I want to or not. lol  
I guess this chapter sort of qualifies as Angst, but it's not horrible. ;D  
I hope ya like it!!  
And thanks to all my awesome reviewers. :D_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto._

**

* * *

**

Everything You Want and More

Chapter 7

By: turtlechick

After I had spilled the beans about Hajime and Neji to Sakura and Temari, it seemed that I had become their next project. They were both determined to get Neji and I together. As much as I appreciated it, I wasn't sure if that was I wanted, for two reasons. One; I wanted to see if I could do it on my own, with out their help. And two; would I really be able to just forget about Hajime so quickly?

Things had just gotten a whole lot more complicated, and if I didn't make a decision soon, people were going to get hurt…

We had other problems than just mine to worry about. Today, well rather tonight, was Tsunade's party, that we had been preparing for her.

"Tenten, were just about done here. All we need for someone to do is take the address to the bakery." Sakura said quietly.

"Do you want one of us to go Tenten?" Temari asked. "It might be weird…"

"No, no I'll be fine. I can do it."

"Then do you want one of us to tag along? You know, for moral support." Sakura smiled.

I giggled at their determination. "I'll be fine. I need to make a delivery of my own, anyway."

"Well, if you're sure…" Temari said, still hesitant of me, going out on my own.

"I'll be back soon." I said as I pushed the button on the elevator and made my journey to the lobby.

As I stepped out onto the street, I knew what I had to do. I was going to choose Neji over Hajime. It was a hard decision to make, but it would even more difficult to tell Hajime the news. Before I headed to bakery, I had another stop to make; the Hyuuga building. I still had Neji's jacket, I just thought I should return it to him. I blushed at the thought of seeing him once again. I know I could have kept it a few days longer, but maybe I just wanted to see him.

The walk to the Hyuuga building wasn't too far, and besides, walking would give me some more time to think about things.

Sure, Neji was a great guy, but so was Hajime… I probably didn't even deserve either one of them. I couldn't help but feel so upset, because of the fact that I was going to break a heart today.

When I eventually arrived at the Hyuuga building, my heart was beating like mad. I seriously felt like it was going to come out of my chest as I traveled up the elevator to the floor Neji was on. When the doors opened, I tried to compose myself.

At the front desk, was the same woman from the time I had come with Hajime. Again this time, the phones were ringing off the hook. I slowly approached the table, Neji's jacket in my arms.

She looked at me, silent, as if she was waiting for me to say something first.

"Uh-uh, I need to see Neji Hyuuga. I have something I need to return to him." I hoisted up Neji's coat to show her.

She scoffed. "He's in a meeting with a new client."

"Oh… well do you know when he'll be done?" I asked politely.

"No, I don't, you can leave it here and I'll give him a message." She snapped. Obviously she didn't like me, or the office was extra busy today.

"Oh, ok." I handed her the jacket over the desk and turned around.

Before I left I took a second to look around the office. Lucky for me, most of the walls were made of glass, so seeing inside of them was pretty easy. I spotted Neji in a far-off room, sitting at a large conference table. He looked so handsome, unmoving, just him. His long elegant hair pulled back like normal, while he wore a nice suit. It looked like the meeting was just getting over because Neji's uncle, Hiashi, stood up and shook another man's hand. Neji followed after a few seconds and shook the same man's hand.

They exited the room and all broke of in different directions. Hiashi, towards what looked to be his office, and Neji towards me, with the other man in tow. I didn't think he saw me yet. I wondered if it was bad that I was here. I could possibly get Neji in trouble. I panicked as he and the other man came closer. Should I try and leave, but what if he had already seen me?

"Tenten?" Too late, I was caught.

"Oh, hi Neji." A weak smile cam across my face.

"A friend of yours Neji?" The man he had been escorting to the door spoke. He didn't look mean, just intimidating because of his size. He was tall and had long white hair.

"Yes," was Neji's reply.

"I… I'm sorry to interrupt." I said, my voice wavering.

"No, no please don't be sorry miss. You may have just sealed the deal with the Hyuuga's and my company." He smiled cheekily at me. In some ways he reminded me of Naruto.

"I did what…?" I didn't know what was going on.

"No offense Neji my boy, but you Hyuugas are known for your stiffness. I'm just glad to see that atleast one of you has a heart, under those hard exteriors." He laughed heartily. "We'll be in touch." He shook Neji's hand once more and then winked at me before he disappeared on the elevator.

"Uh, did I do something?" Neji just stared off into space.

"I think you did… Who knew that was all it took?" He whispered the last part under his breath.

"What took?"

"Never mind, but what are you doing here?" He asked.

"Oh, well, you left your jacket, I just thought I would return it…"

"Tenten, you didn't have to go out of your way to do that." He looked confused.

"It was no problem, I'm running an errand anyway." I smiled at him.

"I see."

"Neji, are you going with your uncle tonight, to Tsunade's party?" I was hoping he would say yes.

"Yes, I believe I am." His expression was unchanged.

"Good, I'll see you there I guess. Bye Neji." I couldn't help but smile at him. He smirked at nodded at me, to signal his goodbye.

O-O-O

My heart fluttered nonstop all the way to the bakery, it only stopped, when I realized what I had to do. I opened the door and stepped in, the blast of the air conditioning immediately sent a chill down my spine.

"Tenten! Hey!" Hajime's voice was so happy. "My boss told me someone was going to stop by."

"Yeah, I need to deliver the address of the place where the party is tonight." I held out the piece of paper with the information written on it.

He took it with a smile and took a moment to look at it. "Ok, sounds good. I'll see you there, right Tenten?" His question caught me off guard.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Silly, I'll be the one delivering the cake." He laughed.

"You're going to bring it…?"

"Yeah… Is that a problem? I would've thought you would be excited to hear that." He smiled again.

My face got hot. "No, no it's no problem. I was just surprised is all. I didn't think that you worked that late…"

"Well, when duty calls, I must answer!" He pumped his fist in the air, and I couldn't help but laugh. "So, I'll see you later, Tenten." He winked at me.

I quickly left and joined the crowded streets, this time on my way back to office. It was only after I was a few blocks away from the bakery, did I realize what I had just done, or didn't do actually. I smacked my forehead repeatedly. This was so dumb. Why couldn't I do it?

O-O-O

"Oh, Tenten, you're back?" I guessed I had spaced out the whole way back to the building.

"Oh, hi Temari…"

"How did it go Tenten?" Sakura sounded understanding.

"Not good, I guess… I just don't know what to do." I said, slumping down in my chair.

"Tell us all about it, Tennie." Sakura said.

"Yeah, neither Sakura don't have any experience with two boys being interested in us, but we'll do our best." If only Temari knew.

"I'm just so frustrated… I know I like Neji more than Hajime, I just can't bring myself to let Hajime go… He was just such a nice friend."

"Well there you go Tenten!" Sakura exclaimed. "You obviously like Neji more, so there you go! Just be with Neji! You shouldn't hide from happiness."

"But what about Hajime…?" Sakura was totally forgetting about my actual problem.

"It seems, like you just want to be friends with this Hajime guy. It may be hard Tenten, but you just have to tell him. It's worse leading him on like you are." Temari was right. I did, however, wonder about something. Usually when people gave advice, they speak from their own experiences. Is that what she did to Shikamaru. Sakura never mentioned that, but maybe Temari had kept it a secret. If she did, then seeing Shikamaru today, didn't make this any easier. I wasn't Temari, that wasn't as easy for me…

"Well, come on, we've got to get ready for tonight…" Sakura said.

"Sakura's right."

Well, they turned out to be a big help.

* * *

_Ta-da!  
I hope everyone liked it. ;)  
And don't forget to check out my new story!!_

_Please review and even if you don't check out my other stories. XD_

_turtlechick...out._


	8. Pleasant Goodbyes

_Yeah, yeah, this took forever.  
I've noticed that my chapters are becoming shorter and lamer. :P  
SO, that's all going to change.  
Updates may take a bit longer, but they should be longer, and better quality. :D  
Thanks to all my reviewers, you're all awesome!!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. :P (Darnit.)_

**

* * *

Everything You Want and More**

Chapter 8

By: turtlechick

"Tenten, can you please go make sure that the band is ready?" Temari ordered, her face in her PDA, making sure that so far everything was going smoothly. "And Tenten."

"Yeah, Temari?"

"Stop fidgeting with your dress, it's not as short as you think it is." Temari hadn't even looked up, and she still knew that I was uncomfortable. It was true, I thought this dress Sakura had picked out for me, was way too short. But, at ten minutes till this thing started, I had no time to change what I was wearing.

I left her side, walking towards the band, pulling my dress down, with every step I took. The band was just getting set up, and the singer was doing his microphone check. I don't know why on earth Sakura booked them, of all people. They were the type of group that played at weddings. Not really something people would hire for a high end party, but when everyone was drunk by the end of the night, no one really cared who was playing. Just as long as there was something to dance to.

"Are you guys ready?" I said as I tapped the drum player's shoulder.

"Yeah, we should be ready to go when the doors open." He smiled, which revealed a large chuck of… something green stuck between his two front teeth. It took all my willpower not to laugh.

"Ok, well just let me know if you guys need anything." I smiled, probably too big, because he stared at me funny. It was all I could do, not to laugh at the object in his teeth.

A moment later, while I was walking away, I saw one of his band mates come up to the drummer. Immediately after that he ran off towards the bathroom, his face, red as a beat. This time, I couldn't help but laugh.

"Tenten?" I spun around to see Hajime, with the cake in his hands. Knowing him, if he didn't put it down soon, it was going to end up on the floor. "Where can I put this?" He looked like he was strained, carrying that big cake.

"Oh, Hajime, just put it down over there." He quickly stumbled to the table I had pointed out, and sat the giant cake down.

He caught his breath. "Thanks a lot Tenten, I didn't know how much longer I could have held that thing." He let out a labored chuckle.

"How did you get it here all by yourself?" I asked.

"Oh, please Tenten, I do those deliveries _all _the time. That was nothing."

"Well, it didn't look like nothing. It _looked _like you were about to drop it." I laughed now.

"So, Tenten, do you guys need any help with anything? I'm all done with my deliveries."

I didn't know if that was the best idea. Not only would having Hajime around, make it harder for me to break off later, but it would definitely cause problems when Neji arrived along with the other guests. I wanted everything to go smoothly. I knew Neji wouldn't cause a scene, but I wasn't sure about Hajime.

"Uh, I'm not sure Hajime. It's about to start…"

"Awe, come on Tenten! I'll stay out of the way. You won't even know I'm here."

I hoped this wouldn't get me in trouble… "Ok, Hajime, but if something happens…"

"Yeah, yeah, I'll leave. No worries Tenten." He winked at me.

Wanting to get out of there as fast as possible I fibbed, and pretended like Sakura was calling me. He bought it, miraculously, so I quickly hurried off towards Sakura. She saw me approaching and got a grin on her face.

"Hey, Tenten, Temari said she wants you at the front door, you know, to greet people as they come in."

"Ok, that's fine, but while I'm there, can you keep an eye on Hajime…? He asked to stay, I can't say no. I'd feel bad turning him down like that…" I said, nervous of what Sakura's reaction would be.

She just looked confused. "Yeah, ok… I'll watch him for you, but, are you sure you want him here? What'll Neji think?" She smiled cheekily at me.

"Sakura, can you just make sure he doesn't do anything?" Things were too stressful at the moment for Sakura to be joking with me about this.

"I'll make sure, now go, people should be arriving soon." She shooed me away and went back to her business.

For a party like this, I didn't know if it was surprising that Tsunade was the first one there. I thought being "fashionably late" was still in. She was certainly dressed for the occasion, her dress had a long neck line, that accentuated her large breasts. As soon as she stepped through the doors, she scanned the room, and her eyes stopped on me, of all people. Atleast this time, I didn't have a huge mustard stain on the front of my shirt.

"Tenten, give me the run down."

She wanted me to do it? Temari or Sakura probably would have done a much better job, than I was about to do.

"Ok, everything is ready for the guests to arrive. The band is set up, and the cake is on that table over there. The chefs are in the back preparing the rest of the deserts, but the appetizers are already out on the tables. As far as I know, things should go smoothly tonight." I hoped I had done a good job.

"Alright, good. Keep it up." With that said, she walked off, and left me to freak out. Sure, I had been working with Tsunade for a couple months now, but never had she told me that I was doing a good job. I felt elated, and wanted to scream, but then remembered that people were going to start flooding in, I needed to stay aware.

As soon as the first guests started to show up, I was on my toes. We only sent out about forty envelopes, but each person was allowed to bring a few friends of their own. So, soon our party or forty, grew to almost ninety. In other words, we had a full house. Keeping things on track, was going to be difficult.

"Tenten?" I knew that voice, it was Neji. I quickly turned around to see him, and his uncle strolling through the door. I was expecting Hinata as well, but I guess since this was only a business affair, she wouldn't need to come.

"Hi Neji, Mr. Hyuuga." Neji's uncle was more intimidating that I had expected. He was more stiff, than Neji ever thought about being. His outfit, was perfectly in order. I couldn't even spot a single spec of dirt anywhere. "It's so good to see that you could make it."

"Uncle, this is Tenten, the girl I was telling you about." I could swear that my heart skipped a beat when Neji said that. But I almost died when Neji left his uncle's side, to come stand next to me.

"Uhh, uhm." I was speechless.

"It is good to meet you miss Tenten." Neji's uncle said, his voice was lower than Neji's, if that was even possible.

"Oh, um, it's nice to meet you too." I managed to get out.

"Come on Neji, I've got some people I need you to meet." Hiashi then said.

"Yes Uncle." As Neji walked away, I couldn't help but feel empty. It felt so good to have him by my side, and then as soon as he left, it was strange.

O-O-O

The party was well in full swing, and I was exhausted. Standing in the back near the buffet, I was finally able to take a breather, and stuff my face with these little keishes, that were, oh so delicious.

"Tenten, there you are." It was Neji. I guess he had finally gotten a chance to get away from his uncle and his friends.

"Oh, hi Neji." I said, seriously hoping that there weren't any pieces of food anywhere on my face.

"I wanted to congratulate you on this party." Maybe he meant that, or maybe this was his excuse to just come and talk to me. Although, with Neji, who knew?

"Awe thanks Neji. I didn't really do that much, just delivered the invitations. Temari and Sakura did most of it."

"Hey Tenten!" Hajime, oh great.

"Hi Hajime… You remember Neji don't you?" I said quietly.

"How could I forget?" Hajime smiled, but anyone with a pair of eyes, could tell it was fake. "This is such a great party Tenten! You did an amazing job!"

"Oh, thank you Hajime."

"Hey, I think people really like the cake. I guess you'll have to come to the bakery for the next party right?" He winked at me. Was this just some way of making Neji jealous? Would having to see Hajime again, make Neji jealous?

"Hn." Neji never lost his poker face, but something told me, he was upset. Suddenly, it was all gone, the feeling that something was wrong. "Tenten, I guess I'll see you at lunch on Thursday?"

Now Neji was doing it to? I couldn't believe this.

"I'm going to go see if Sakura needs my help with anything." I said, leaving Hajime and Neji behind me, at the buffet table.

Sakura was chatting with a few of Tsunade's elderly guests. She saw me out of the corner of her eye and motioned me over. I would do anything to get away, so I did as she told.

"Folks, this is my good friend Tenten." She patted me on the back, as I entered the small circle.

"It's good to meet you dear." Said an old woman whom I had stood next to. I just smiled at her.

"Well, if you'll excuse us. Tenten and I have some things to take care of. Please enjoy the rest of the party." I had just gotten there, and now she wanted us to leave? She grabbed my hand and pulled me to the side.

"What's wrong Tenten?" She looked me straight in the eyes.

"What makes you think there is something wrong?" I asked, in awe of how she knew so quickly.

"Oh please Tenten, believe it or not, I know you pretty well. Well enough to know when something is up. Besides, you stopped tugging at your dress, a sure sign that something else is on your mind."

So my dress was the one that betrayed me? Great.

"It's Hajime and Neji. They're acting like children. Sure, Hajime started it, but never in a million years did I think that Neji would stoop that low either." I stated.

"That's it?! What I wouldn't give for atleast one guy to like me, or for Sasuke to even notice me for that matter." I guess I was kind of shoving my problems on Sakura, but she did ask. "Look, just lay low, and don't show favoritism towards Neji tonight. It'll just cause more problems. The party is almost over anyway." There were only about ten minutes left. "If you really want something to do, then you can handle the drunks on the dance floor. We'll need to deal with them sooner or later." Sakura laughed.

I guess drunk old guys were better than having to be around both Hajime and Neji for the time being.

I scanned the dance floor and finally spotted an elderly man thrashing himself about the room. His cheeks were rosy and his eyes glazed over. It was time for crowd control.

O-O-O

"I'm exhausted…" I said, to no one in particular. Most everyone was gone, except for Sakura, Temari and myself. Hajime, had said his goodbyes, but Neji never did. I guess after I left him before, he decided to just leave with his uncle. I would have atleast thought he would have told me goodbye.

"Did that last guy give you trouble Tenten?" Temari asked, a small smile on her face.

"Yeah, he tried to stuff his hand up my dress. I told you guys this thing was too short!" I knew he didn't know up from down, but it still made me mad.

"Why don't you head home Tenten, we know you're tired. Besides, the taxi ride to your place takes a little longer." Temari suggested. "We've got everything covered here."

"Well, if you two are sure…"

"Of course Tenten, go, go, we can finish." Sakura said.

"Well, ok, I guess I'll see you two tomorrow morning."

"See you."

"Bye, Tenten."

I made my way to the door and slowly opened it. The rush of cool air, immediately made me wish I had brought a long a jacket, or atleast pants to change into. Hailing a cab in this weather, wasn't going to be pleasant.

"Tenten."

I turned around, surprised to see Neji leaning against the building's outer wall. I thought he had already left.

"Oh, Neji… What are you still doing here?" I asked, out of curiosity.

"Do you need a ride home?" His voice, was so even.

"Well, yeah I do." Come to think of it, he didn't answer my question. I guess it didn't matter though.

"Come on, I parked the car across the street." I nodded and joined him at his side. We were both still as we waited for the light to turn green so that we could cross the street. I could sense him rustling next to me, and then his jacket draped across my shoulders, just like before.

We both got in, and he started the car, immediately turning on the heater.

A part of me wanted to chew him out for before. For making me feel so uncomfortable with Hajime. For him, performing the same tactics has Hajime. It was so completely unlike him. But, like I said, that was only a part of me. Somewhere inside me, I was glad. Glad to know, that he was jealous enough, to do that.

I was so lost in thought, I didn't even notice him park the car and get out. I only truly realized it when he opened the door for me.

"Tenten?"

"Oh, sorry Neji. I was just spacing out for a minute…" I sounded so stupid. Stepping out of the car, he shut the door behind me.

"Would you like me to walk you to your room?" He asked. It caught me completely off guard.

"Oh, um, sure." By now, my heart was pounding.

Neither of us said anything as we walked up the stairs. I was panicking. Was I supposed to invite him in? And if I did, what would we do? How long would he stay? Would he want to… do it? I was sure my face was beat red. He didn't seem to notice at all, which was good for me.

We made it to my door, and I fiddled around in my purse, looking for my keys. I finally found them, but I didn't go to unlock my door just yet.

"Thank you Neji, for waiting for me tonight." I smiled at him. "Oh I almost forgot." I took his jacket off and handed it back to him.

He didn't say anything, just stared at me, his face unchanging. My heart leapt as he started to lean down, closer and closer to my face. I was waiting for a kiss, but it never came. When I finally got the courage to open my eyes, his face wasn't in front of mine. Instead he had leaned down so his mouth was next to the side of my face.

"Goodnight Tenten." Was all he said, but his hot breath on my ear, sent shivers up and down my spine. He lingered there for a moment and then slowly pulled away. I stood there in shock, watching as he walked back down the stairs.

I regained my composure and made my way into my apartment. I shut the door behind me and slid down to the floor. My ear was still warm from his breath. I sat there for a good five minutes, not speaking, just thinking. Thinking about how I wanted to see him again.

* * *

_I hope it was worth the wait. ;D  
Thanks so much for reading and I hoped you liked it._

_Btw: As I mentioned in the beginning of this story, things are going to change. The next time I update Past and Present, I'll have edited the first two chapters, jsut because I left out some details, I wanted to stick in there. So be sure to read it! ;D_

_Please review, and even if you don't, check out some of my other stories. XD_

_turtlechick...out._


	9. Birthdays, Fights and Ice Cream

_OMG, I AM SO SORRY. D:  
I could list a million reasons why this took me a MONTH, but I won't.  
I really hope it's worth the uber long wait this time...  
THANKS TO ALL MY GREAT REVIEWERS!!  
ENJOY!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto._

**

* * *

**

**Everything You Want and More**

Chapter 9

By: turtlechick

"So Temari any ideas for your birthday?" Sakura asked as we walked down the street to Ino's for lunch. "I think we should do something big! Last year was such a yawn."

Temari rolled her eyes. "Gee, thanks Sakura. I don't want anything big. We should just go out and do something." Temari didn't sound very enthused about her birthday.

"Aww, come on Temari, atleast try to sound excited. It is your birthday tomorrow, after all."

Sometimes it was hard to see how Sakura and Temari became friends in the first place. Sakura was always chipper, it was sometimes she annoyed people. Temari, on the other hand, didn't seem to get excited about most anything. Sure, she was fun to be around, but at times she could be a downer. By no means was I perfect and I knew that. The more I thought about it, I really didn't know how they became so close.

"Fine, Sakura, do whatever you want, but tell me so I can invite Sakon." I had been spacing out so I hadn't heard the part of the conversation where Temari had finally agreed to Sakura's plans.

Sakura sighed. "Fine." I could tell she wasn't too excited about Sakon coming, but neither was I. One reason was that if Sakon came, it probably meant that Kidoumaru was going to come as well. I remembered him that close to me that night and it could still shivers up my spine. She opened the door to Ino's building and we all sat down at the table. Most everyone was there already, except for Shikamaru.

Ino was perched on Sai's lap. I could tell that he really didn't want her there, because he was trying to eat, but had to keep avoiding her arms as they waved around while Ino told an elaborate story. It was actually kind of funny to watch. Sai would go for a piece of food on his plate and have to dodge Ino's elbow with every stretch. There was a saying that said; there were some people and that if you cut off their arms, they wouldn't be able to talk. I guess Ino was just one of those people.

Sakura took a seat next to Sasuke, and it looked like he didn't really seem to mind. Naruto was listening to whatever crazy story Ino happened to be telling, while Hinata just sat there twiddling her thumbs under the table. Sakura and Temari were right; Naruto is totally oblivious.

"Tenten." I turned around in my chair to see Neji standing behind me. I hadn't even heard him as he walked up.

"Oh, hi Neji." I said cheerfully. He quietly took the seat next to me, but he didn't grab any of the food spread out on the table. "Not hungry?" I asked.

"Oh… no, my uncle ordered in for the office today." He replied.

"That was awfully nice of him." If Neji had already eaten, then why did he come to lunch anyway? I decided not to ask, but it did make me really curious as to why he showed up today.

"So guys, it's Temari's birthday tomorrow." Sakura began. "I say that tonight, we go out to celebrate it. So what do you guys say?"

"Sai and I can't go." Ino said, she sounded upset, but at same time ok with it. "We've got a date planned." She mussed up Sai's hair as he finally got a chance to eat while Ino temporarily stopped her story telling.

"I've got to watch Hanabi tonight…" Hinata said.

Just then, the door opened and in came Shikamaru, he looked like he had been having a rough day, and he appeared to be even more tired than usual.

"Oh, Shikamaru there you are!" Sakura seemed excited to see him. "We're going out for Temari's birthday tonight. You can come right?" She was probably just excited because it was just another chance for her to get Temari and Shikamaru together. Although, with Sakon there, that wasn't really going to be possible. I bet Sakura was going to try though.

Shikamaru sighed, "Sure." Didn't he work the night shifts?

"Great!" Sakura exclaimed. "Naruto, what about you?"

"I can't go either. I've got to stay late today. Jiraya said he needed my help with something." I think I heard Sakura mention before that Jiraya was Naruto's adoptive father and also his boss.

"Sasuke…?" Sakura wasn't as enthused about asking Sasuke. She was still nervous around him.

"Yeah, sure I'll go." I could tell Sakura was excited about that.

"And Neji?" Oh yeah, she hadn't asked Neji yet. I wonder what he would say? He didn't really seem like the partying type, even though he had gone out before. Would he have to work late tonight?

"I'll go," I heard his deep baritone say next to me. Somehow, I couldn't help but smile.

"Great we'll see you guys tonight!"

O-O-O

Back at the office, it was fairly quiet, even though we were going out that night. We didn't really have much to do this week because Tsunade wasn't doing a show this week because she was under the weather. I saw her on the phone with her manager earlier that week; apparently she still wanted to do the show despite her being sick. Tsunade sure gave him an earful, but in the end he won the dispute, bringing up a previous incident. I had no idea what it was, but it sounded like it was pretty funny, since Tsunade's face grew ten shades of red.

"So are you two excited for tonight?" Sakura said, as she typed on her keyboard.

"Yeah, I guess so…" I replied. Temari still hadn't answered the question.

"Temari." Sakura paused. "Temari, what about you?"

"Huh? Oh, hold on." Temari was staring at her phone's tiny screen intently, and she kept looking, her face began to fall.

"What's wrong Temari?" I asked.

She set her phone back on her desk. "Well, you two will be happy to know that Sakon can't come tonight."

"What? Why not?" Sakura demanded.

"He just said he was busy." Temari snapped back, but I could tell she was upset that he wasn't going to be coming with us.

"Well, that's lame. As much as I don't like him, he should still come. It is his girlfriend's birthday." Sakura said, obviously peeved by Sakon's latest antics.

"You're still going to come right Temari?" I asked, worried she might decide not to show up.

"Yeah, don't worry, I'll be there Tenten. Its like Sakura said, it is my birthday after all."

O-O-O

It was a wonder how this whole thing worked out. The only other people that came besides Sakura, Temari and I, were Sasuke, Shikamaru and Neji. Sakura was probably jumping up and down on the inside.

"Well now that we're all here, let's get a move on." Sakura said, as she grabbed my hand and yanked me into the nearest door. I hadn't even gotten a chance to say hello to Neji yet…

She finally let go as soon as we were in the middle of the dance floor and then started to dance crazily. I didn't see why people liked to come to these places. The music was too loud and the people were a little out there. Not to mention the whole place smelled like booze.

"Come on Tenten, dance!" Sakura shouted at me.

I was apprehensive at first, the thought of dancing in a public place, just wasn't my thing. But after standing there awkwardly with Sakura dancing madly next to me I started to lightly tap my foot, then shake my hips to the beat of the music, and soon I was dancing as crazily as Sakura was.

I had to admit it; I had fun.

When Sakura and I got tired we found the others on the back wall of the building. It didn't look like the others were having as much fun as we had. No one was talking. I wondered if it had been like this the whole time we had been gone.

"So are you guys ready to move to the next one?" Sakura suggested, seeing the reactions of the rest of the group. I was surprised she was ready to go so quickly. I was a bit out of breath.

Temari immediately jumped out of her seat. "Yes, let's go." The rest followed and we soon found ourselves on the street, on our way to the next place.

I hoped that Temari's birthday would get better by the end of the night. It hadn't gone well so far.

It was chilly out, but felt good after getting so hot inside the club. Sakura led the pack while Sasuke trailed behind her. Temari and Shikamaru walked next to each other but they never spoke. Neji and I brought up the rear.

"So did you ever figure out why Shikamaru was so late today? He didn't seem like his normal self today…" I asked Neji. I made sure I said it low enough so that Shikamaru couldn't hear me.

Neji let out a sigh. "I heard he got laid off today." A fancy term for being fired.

"Oh no… Why?"

"I'll give you one guess." Neji seemed so emotionless about Shikamaru's lack of a job. Then again, Neji never showed too much emotion about anything.

I thought about it for a moment. Sakura had explained to me about how Shikamaru was this secret genius. Apparently, his I.Q. was incredible. I wondered why any job would turn down anyone like that, but then it hit me… The one thing that Shikamaru always seemed to be doing.

"He fell asleep on the job?"

"Yep."

"Poor Shikamaru…" I felt so bad for him.

"Hmm."

"Does anyone else know?" I asked him.

"I don't think so, Temari maybe," he answered.

"I wish there was something we could do for him…"

"Yeah."

"We're here!" Sakura shouted as she rushed into the red door that lead into the building.

It wasn't as crowded inside as the other one, so didn't feel so claustrophobic. I looked around when I felt myself bump into someone. After I took a moment to see who it was I found out it was Temari, frozen in her tracks.

"Temari?" I said. She didn't reply, so I moved from behind her and glanced in front of her, as I looked for the reason she had stopped so abruptly.

And boy did I find it. There sitting at a booth was Sakon, on his arm was another girl and by his side was none other than Kidoumaru.

"You son of a bitch!" I didn't know why it took Sakura so long to say something. I could only imagine how long she must have waited to say that to him. Sakura was livid, I hadn't ever seen her so mad.

Temari stayed silent.

The group was in shock. No one moved at first, until Sakura started up again.

"How could you do this Temari! Your girlfriend!? It's her birthday you bastard! How dare you make up some lame excuse not to come with us and then come out with some other bitch!?" Sakura was definitely scary, it was like a whole new side of her. The girl Sakon was with didn't like being called a "bitch." But I have to say she did look like one.

I was surprised to see Sakura like this, but Sasuke was almost equally surprised. He placed his arm on her shoulder, in hopes of making her stop.

Temari still didn't say anything about what was going on at the moment.

"Don't you have anything to say for yourself?!" Sakura yelled again.

He laughed and then stood up. "What do you want me to say? That I'm sorry?" He chuckled again. "Please, I was bound to get found out anyway. We had a good run didn't we Temari?"

All of a sudden, Sakon was on the ground and he began to spit out blood onto the ground. I didn't even see Shikamaru punch him. It probably felt good for him, all that pent up anger about getting fired. I bet punching someone felt pretty good. It was only a plus that person was Sakon.

In a flash, Kidoumaru was by Sakon's side, ready to fight back. Shikamaru didn't look like he was ready to back down. But he did when Neji stopped him and put himself in between Shikamaru and Kidoumaru.

"Don't cause yourself anymore problems Shikamaru." I heard him say.

"Ha, I knew you were just a wuss Shikamaru, no wonder you always stay in the background. You can't handle a real fight. You've got to have Hyuuga fight your battles for you. You're pathetic." Those were not the words that Shikamaru needed to hear right now.

"Shut up, Kidoumaru." Neji snapped.

"What are you going to do Hyuuga? You can't make me stop."

This had become a problem. We had gathered quite the crowd, it was only a matter of time before someone who worked there showed up.

Neji didn't say anything back, just stood there. It stayed quiet, everyone tried to anticipate what would happen next. Sasuke looked ready to help, just in case a real fight broke out. Sakon had gotten to his feet as the girl, who he came here with, gushed over his small injury.

And still, Temari said nothing. I was beginning to get worried about her. It was a matter of time before she snapped.

"Come on Hyuuga!" Kidoumaru roared. "Fight me!" Neji kept still, never once dropping his cool demeanor. "Fine, I'll start." Kidoumaru swiftly landed his fist onto Neji's cheek, which sent him straight back into Shikamaru, who was able to hold him up. Neji stood up on his own and wiped his face with his sleeve. Kidoumaru didn't look like he was done though.

I didn't know what to do. Was I supposed to go get help? Did I need to step in before someone really got hurt? Should I step in at all?

"Stop!" It was Temari, she finally said something. She pushed past Shikamaru and Neji and stood right in front of Sakon. She stared him down until he blinked and the room echoed with a slap. A slap that came from Temari. She paused for a moment and I thought she was really going to let him have it. I expected her to tell him, but she didn't, she just turned around and walked away.

"All of you, get out now!" Finally, a bouncer had showed up.

The crowd broke up and the six of us left, along with Sakon, Kidoumaru and that girl. The three of them quickly left and the six of us stood on the street, not sure of what to do next. The night was ruined, obviously. We all calmed down and assessed the damage done. Neji was going to have a fat lip the next day but other than that he was fine. Sakura had cooled off, along with Shikamaru. The only one who didn't look alright, was Temari.

"Temari?" I went and stood next to her. "Are you ok?"

She sniffed, and I couldn't have been more shocked. Temari was actually crying.

"Yeah Tenten, I'm fine." She wiped away her tears. "I don't know why I'm crying. He's not worth it…"

"It's alright if you cry Temari…" I said quietly.

"Temari, let's get out of here." Sakura said and Temari nodded. Sasuke hailed us a cab and the three of us piled in. Sakura rolled down the window and stuck her head outside. 'We'll be at my place. Sorry tonight was such a disaster. Glad you three came though…" Sakura added. They gave they're goodbyes and started down the street. "Step on it cabbie, first stop the grocery store, we're going to need a whole lot of ice cream."

* * *

_Well there it is!  
Not too sure how I feel about it...  
But your opinion is the one that matters right?! XD_

_(Updates should be getting back to normal soon, after I get back into the groove of school.) :P_

_Please review and even if you don't, check out some of my other stories. XD_

_turtlechick...out._


	10. Day Off

_Update Time!  
I didn't really know what to do i this chapter,  
and actually this idea was going to be a couple chapters away...  
But I decided to put it in now, to make up for my lack of updates. :3  
*cheeky smile* XD  
THANKS TO ALL MY WONDERFUL REVIEWERS!!!  
Enjoy!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. T_T_

**Everything You Want and More**

Chapter 10

By: turtlechick

"I'm really happy we got to do this Temari!" I said. Temari and I were on our way to her favorite café for lunch on the other side of town. Sakura couldn't come along because she was feeling a little under the weather, but it was ok with Temari and I. In all the time that I had been here, I don't think I've done anything with just the two of us. It was going to be a nice change of pace. Especially now that none of us had to worry about Sakon anymore.

She laughed at my vibrant attitude. "Me too, Tenten."

We sat down at a table and waited patiently for a waiter to take our order.

"So how are you holding up, Temari?" I asked, jumping the gun a bit I guess. She sighed.

"I'm fine, Tenten. You and Sakura can stop worrying about me now. I told you I'm over it now… He's not worth it anymore." She said.

"Temari, it's our job to worry about you. We're your best friends, you know." I said, hoping to help show her that we were here for her. That night before that happened, I hadn't ever gone through something like that with someone. I hadn't ever helped someone with a break up before.

"I know that. But really, I'm fine. Besides, I think this will open some doors for me. Besides, this is what you two wanted all along right?" Temari asked with a cheeky smile.

"Well, I don't know… maybe…" We had been caught.

She laughed. "You can't fool me Tennie. It's kind of obvious. Not just the fact that I'm no longer with Sakon, but now I can be with Shikamaru right?" She had hit the nail on the head…boy, she was good.

"Um…" How was I supposed to respond to that?

Temari just sat there, sipping her tea. She was different today; she was being so blatant, so honest. Was it because she was so carefree now that she didn't have Sakon to weigh her down? I guess that was a possibility… It just didn't seem like that was it, but something was strange about Temari today.

"Believe me Tennie, I'm surprised that Shikamaru and I didn't get together a long time ago." She smiled. "You see, Shikamaru and I grew up in the same town, but we went to different schools. Our schools were close to each other and we all got to see one another quite often. I was voted our school representative and somehow that lazy ass did ass well. We spent a lot of time together, and most everyone assumed that we were dating."

That sort of explained their past, but the rest is a bit foggy.

"I guess that's why we never ended up together before… I knew he never would make a move so it was up to me, but…"

"But?" I questioned. By now I was on the edge of my seat.

"It's hard to explain, I guess I didn't want to date Shikamaru because it's what was expected of us. I didn't want to let everyone else win…"

I could've fallen out of my chair… Was Temari being serious? The reason she never dated Shikamaru was because of the expectations of others?

"Temari, you've got to be joking me… right?" I asked.

She took another sip. "Nope." So she really was serious…

"Well what about now?! Are you going to cheat yourself and Shikamaru just because Sakura and I want you two to be together?!" I almost yelled in the middle of the café.

"I haven't decided yet." She smiled again.

I smacked my forehead. "You really are unbelievable Temari, you know that?" I sighed.

"Yep. So you two will just have to see for yourself if it does happens." She stuck her tongue out at me. "But anyway, I'm late for a hair appointment. I'll see you at work tomorrow Tenten." With that said she jumped out of her chair and left out the door.

"Yeah, bye Temari…" I didn't get her at all sometimes.

Feeling slightly defeated I left for home, with nothing else to do on my day off. I wonder if Sakura knew all that. I don't think she did, but it was possible. Poor Shikamaru, he had liked her for so long, and for Temari not to be with him because of that, is just plain stupid. But Temari could have been hiding her own feelings. Maybe she liked Shikamaru but just because of those people she hid her emotions… that was a possibility.

My head hurt with all of the scenarios running through my head.

"Tenten?" I spun around to see Hajime, with a small girl on his arm.

She was small, and had bright blond hair with dark green eyes. She was cute, definitely in Hinata's league in the cuteness department..

"Hajime?" I was a bit surprised to see him with another girl, but at the same time it didn't hurt me at all. Which was a nice surprise.

"How are you Tenten?" He asked with a smile.

"I'm really good, Hajime. It seems like you're doing pretty well for yourself." I motioned towards the small beauty on his arm.

He scratched his head and laughed. "Oh yeah, this is my girlfriend, Hitomi."

She unlatched herself from Hajime and stuck out her hand. "Nice to meet you, Tenten." She seemed truly genuine, but what else was I to expect from Hajime's girlfriend? Someone like him deserved a nice girl like Hitomi.

I obliged her handshake and smiled. "Nice to meet you as well." She let go of my hand and went right back to holding onto Hajime. "So where are you two off to at this time of day?" I hadn't noticed it before, but the evening was well approaching. I guess we stayed at that café longer than expected.

"We're actually heading to a movie. What about you, Tenten?" He answered and then asked right away.

"Oh today's my day off. I was just going home to see if anything was worth watching on TV." I replied. "Nothing too exciting."

"Same old, same old then?" He asked with his usual grin.

"Yeah, I guess you could say that." It was strange, our conversation that is. It was like one of those scenes in the movies when a couple break up and then they meet up again along the road. Although, one of them has a new significant other. So weird… But Hajime and I never had anything like that. It was just awkward talk between two friends. "But anyway, I'll let you two get to your movie. I would want to keep you." I smiled, obviously uncomfortable.

"Alright, see you , Tenten." Hajime waved and then Hitomi. I waved back and then started back to my apartment.

My feet shuffled against the concrete sidewalk as I drew closer and closer to home. It would be nice to put my feet up. I rarely got a day off, but since Tsunade was still sick, there wasn't really any point to any of us going. It was pretty convenient for Sakura ,she was sick and didn't have to miss work, because we already got the day off. I bet Temari and I wouldn't be so lucky the next time we got sick.

I sure hoped that Tsunade would get better soon, I had nothing to do on our days off.

O-O-O

When my apartment building was finally in sight I let out a sigh of relief. Being at home and doing nothing was what a day off was all about. Looking ahead I saw a person on the step leading up to the front steps of my complex. It looked a lot like…

"Neji…?"

The person looked up and low and behold, it was Neji. How long had he been waiting there? More importantly why was he here in the first place?

He stood. "Ah, Tenten…"

"What are you doing here, Neji?" I asked, cutting to the chase.

"I'm not sure… But do I need a reason?" He said.

My heart skipped a little in my chest.

"No, I guess not, but you could have called, instead of just sitting out here…," my voice was puzzled.

He waved his phone in the air, the screen was black. "Dead."

"Oh." I giggled. "Well, while you're here, want to go for a walk?" I suggested, although part of me still wanted to go inside and relax.

"…Sure." He said.

We walked side by side, and it was silent for the most part, except for the background noise of course. Like the cars, people and other things around the city. This was pretty relaxing, just being with Neji. We didn't have to talk to enjoy each other.

"So what have you been up to today, Neji?"

There was a point, however, where I needed some conversation.

He sighed. "Paperwork for the most part. Uncle and I have a case coming up, and it's just required stuff."

"Oh I see. Are you worried?" I asked, seeing the tiredness on his face.

"Hn. Our opponent is one of the best prosecutors in the country."

"Well I'm sure you and your uncle will do a fine job! You always put so much into your work."

"Hmm."

"You worry too much Neji. You should let loose every once and a while." I smiled at him, but I could tell he was a little embarrassed. He didn't say anything back, but it was alright, he had heard what I had to say.

We walked again, in silence.

"What about you, Tenten?" I don't think it was ever Neji that broke the silence between us…

"What did I do today? Hmm… I woke up, got dressed, did some grocery shopping, went to lunch with Temari, saw Hajime--"

"What…?" Neji interrupted me, and at first I didn't see why. But thinking back, it sure sounded like I spent time with Hajime today. Neji was jealous.

"Oh, don't worry Neji, I saw him on my way home. He was actually on the way to the movies, with his new girlfriend." I couldn't believe I was able to say that with such a happy expression, but for some reason, it came out effortless.

"Hmm."

"You, don't have to be jealous, Neji." I smiled, but he didn't look back.

"I'm not… not--"

I didn't let him finish, because when I grabbed his hand, he stopped and stared. But I just smiled. The feeling of his hand in mine… was nice. It was a little awkward at first, but after a while, it felt like that was the way it was supposed to be.

O-O-O

Somehow, we ended up back at my place and Neji walked me up to my room. I didn't notice but his hand was still in mine. He looked down at me and brought his face closer and closer to mine. I thought he was going to get my hopes up like last time, but no. He leaned down and kissed me.

The pressure of the kiss lightly pushed me against the wall, but then Neji stopped, and looked at me once again.

"Good bye, Tenten." He said placing another light kiss on the top of my head.

He began to walk away again, but I didn't want him to leave yet. So before he got too far away from me, I grabbed his hand.

"Neji, do you want to come inside?"

* * *

_Yeah, lemons make me squirm so you won't see one from me any time soon, or ever.  
But it is implied that they did do... "it." XD  
Anyway, hope you liked it._

_Note: Good news and bad news... Bad news, I've decided to delete Past and Present. Sorry... T_T BUT GOOD NEWS! Someone has finally adopted Belonging!! *crowd cheers*. XD  
I'll put a link in my profile. ;D_

_Please review and even if you don't check out some of my other stories. XD_

_turtlechick...out._

* * *


	11. Misunderstandings

_Oh geez.  
I can't even begin to say how sorry I am at the length of time it took me to update. T_T  
I got into a bit of a rut and lost my motivation to write...  
I think I'm out of it so updates should be more frequent again!  
Thanks to all my amazing reviewers!!!! :D_

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto..._

****

* * *

**Everything You Want and More**

Chapter 11

By: turtlechick

"Tenten? Tenten? Wake up?" That was funny, I didn't ever remember my alarm clock waking me up by name before. Then it hit me, that voice was in fact Neji's. As the events of last night caught up with me, I didn't move an inch. How was I supposed to act now? "You don't want to be late for work do you?"

That was right. I had to go to work.

"I'm guessing if you go to work without every hair in place, Temari and Sakura will know something is up?"

I caught myself smiling. I had barely ever heard Neji talk this much without someone saying something back. He sounded slightly more upbeat than he usually did. I slowly sat up and stretched my arms over my head. Neji was already up and was almost completely dressed. Now he was just buttoning up his shirt.

"What time is it?" I asked, my voice was groggy.

"Eight." He replied.

I mentally cursed and threw myself back onto the bed.

I was almost late. If I didn't get up now I'd be late for sure. So I got up and didn't even bother to shower, if I did I would just be late anyway, and those two would know something was up for sure. I decided I would just put on a ton of my perfume and pray that they didn't notice.

When I was finally ready Neji was waiting for me in the doorway. He was leaning against the doorframe with his arms over his chest, he was looking at the ground, paying no attention that I was even there.

"Ready…?" I asked hesitantly.

"Hmm." I guess that was a yes since his hand reached for the doorknob and turned to open it.

When we made our way our to the street the air between us was incredibly awkward. Neither of us spoke, we just stood there. Eventually, a cab pulled up next to us and Neji opened the door for me. I slid into the car, but Neji never followed. He stood there with the door open.

"Aren't you getting in, Neji?" I asked him.

"No, I'll wait for another." He said, looking down the street, a distant gaze in his eyes.

"But what will happen if you're late?"

"I'll be fine." He brought his eyes back to me. "I'll call you later, I want to talk about something." He then placed a light kiss on my forehead then shut the door, leaving me alone in the cab.

"Talk about something? I wonder what it was he wanted to talk about…"

"Where to miss?" The cabbie asked.

O-O-O

When I rushed to the elevator I knew I had about a minute to make my self presentable to Sakura and Temari. I fixed my shirt, checked my collar for any tags sticking out and mussed with my hair. Then I stopped. Why should I have to hide it from them? Neji and I were in a relationship now, I should want to tell everyone.

But that was just it…

Were Neji and I in a relationship at all? We hadn't really discussed it since we were in such a rush this morning. We both just kind of left. What if I was just some girl that he spent a night with? What if I meant nothing to him? What if he was just using me?

At that very moment the elevator doors opened up and I was more of a wreck than I was coming in. I tried to calm myself down but I was just so nervous. Sakura and Temari were going to know something was up now. It would be so embarrassing to tell them what happened when Neji and I didn't even know where we stood with each other.

"Hey there, Tenten, good morning." It was Temari at her desk, and only Temari. I put my stuff down and then sat in my chair.

"Where's Sakura?" I asked.

"Late I guess. I'm sure she'll be here soon though."

And there she was, the elevator doors flew open and there was Sakura. She obviously had been running since her face was all red.

"Speak of the devil." Temari mumbled just loud enough for me to hear.

"I heard that Temari." And apparently it was loud enough for Sakura too. Her face lit up again. "So guess what guys?!"

"What?" Temari said unenthusiastically.

Sakura stuck her tongue out in her direction. "Fine, grumpy pants, I'll just tell Tenten then." Sakura skipped over to my desk and sat on top of it, almost on top of me she was so close. "So Tenten, guess who just asked me out?" I had never seen Sakura's smile this big before.

"Umm…" Like I didn't already know it was, especially if she was this excited about the whole thing.

"Sasuke!" She said as I giggled at her delight.

"I'm so happy for you Sakura." I said.

"Thanks, Tennie, you're such a sweetheart." Her smile grew. "Unlike some people." She made another face at Temari.

"Oh come on, Sakura. You know I'm happy for you too." Temari finally said. "So are you going to tell us the whole story? Or what?"

As Sakura told her story I couldn't help but feel relieved. Now that the spotlight was on Sakura I didn't have to worry about them noticing that I was a complete wreck on the inside. But at the same time, I wanted to tell them, hell, I just wanted to tell someone. I wanted some support and someone to tell me that it was going to be ok. I wanted someone to reassure me about this whole situation with Neji.

"Hey Tenten are you alright? You look like you're about to cry. I mean I knew this whole thing with Sasuke was exciting, but I don't know why you would be so happy that you would cry." Sakura said.

I saw Temari elbow her. "Say Tenten, what happened to you after we had coffee? I called your place to make sure you got home ok, but you didn't answer. Where'd you go?"

I took a deep breath. " I saw Hajime on the way home."

Sakura gasped. "What happened?"

"Nothing really, we just talked for a minute. And he had his new girlfriend with him."

"What a jerk!" Sakura exclaimed. "How could he do that to you?!"

"No, she was really nice actually. I'm glad he found someone who will appreciate him."

"So what happened after?" Temari asked. She could already tell there was more to this story.

"I saw Neji afterwards. He had been waiting for me at my apartment for who knows how long?"

Sakura squealed. "Oh my gosh that is so adorable. What happened next?"

"Then we just went for a walk and somehow ended up back at my place again and then we-"

"You what?" Temari questioned.

I couldn't say anymore, it was all just too embarrassing, so I broke down and cried. Sakura immediately ran to my side and consoled me. I don't know why I cried. Maybe it was just because I had so many emotions that I hadn't been able to get out yet. It was new for me to feel happiness, anger and sadness all at the same time. But despite my earlier judgment, I told Temari and Sakura every detail about Neji and I.

O-O-O

After they were able to calm me down, the day went on as nothing had really happened. My situation still worried me, but I felt a little bit better about it now. But even with all the extra encouragement, I still wondered what Neji wanted to talk about. Why couldn't he have just told me this morning? As I packed up my stuff to head home, my mind started to drift once again.

"Tenten?" It was Temari.

"Don't worry about Neji. Even thought to most people he seems like a cold bastard, he really isn't. I think you know that more than most people. I'm sure whatever Neji wants to talk about, has your best interests at heart. He's not the type of guy to just throw some girl away."

Everything Temari had just said, was completely true. Neji definitely wasn't that type of person.

"Thanks, Temari, you really made me feel better today." I smiled at her.

"Hey, are you two ready yet!?" Sakura shouted from the elevator. "I can't hold it forever you know!" Temari and I couldn't help but laugh at her. Tsunade had sent some extra work home with Sakura, and with that in her arms, you could barely see her face, not to mention she had one foot stuck in the door to keep it from closing. "Come on guys!"

Temari sped over and grabbed the door while I took some of the stuff on the top of the enormous pile Sakura was holding onto. As the elevator made it's way to the lobby, I felt a smile make its way to my lips. I hadn't really noticed it before, but I was calm now. I was confident in my relationship with Neji, and if he did want to break it off, I know it would be not out of spite towards me. If things did truly end, I'm sure we could stay friends.

Back on the street, I handed Sakura the things I had taken from her earlier and Temari and I helped her stuff them all in a cab.

"Tenten?" I spun around to see Neji leaning against a black car, it was probably one of his uncle's.

"Neji…? What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be at work? I thought you had that big case coming up?"

He put his head down like he was embarrassed or something. "We do. I just couldn't concentrate, so my uncle sent me home."

"I see…"

"Hey, Tenten I'll see you tomorrow. Call me later kay?" Temari said before she left the two of us alone. I watched her go, but before she was too far away she winked at me.

"Do you need a ride?" Neji asked, bringing my attention right back to him. I nodded and he opened the door for me and then closed it once I was in. The car ride to my apartment was as awkward as ever, and more than anything I just wanted it to be over.

When we finally arrived I didn't move. I could sense that Neji had something to say. Why didn't he just get it over with? Couldn't he tell that it was making me a nervous wreck?

"Tenten? I wanted to talk to you about something." I was really beginning to hate it when he as talking to me, but never looked my way.

"Ok, shoot." I said, trying desperately to make light of the mood.

He sighed, and my heart dropped a bit. "There's going to be a party with my family one week from now. It's a yearly thing, everyone in my family shows up. I'm not really sure why we host it every year, but it's sort of a tradition we've been doing it so long." I was so lost at this point. "It's really formal and all my family goes all out for it. It's one of the things the Hyuuga family is known for, so of course I have to attend. That's where you come in Tenten. I'd like you to come along, as my girlfriend."

I couldn't believe my ears, Neji wasn't breaking it off with me at all. He was just having a hard time asking me to his family's party. And to think… all this time I was so worried for nothing.

"I'll understand if you don't want to go. To be honest, that's the last place I would ever wish to be. To be in the same room as all of those smug stuck up people, makes me sick."

"Neji."

"Hn?"

"I'd love to go with you."

* * *

_There ya have it!  
I hope it was kind of worth the ridiculously long wait. XD  
Like I said, another update won't take this long.  
And along with that, another story will probably come out soon,  
just as soon as I get all the details worked in my head. lol_

_Please review, and even if you don't, check out some of my other stories! XD_

_turtlechick...out._


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